Image courtesy 123rf
German virtual power plant (VPP) developer sonnen has entered the Canadian market with a VPP of approximately 100 sonnenBatteries.
The new VPP is launching in Edmonton, the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta, built in the residential district ‘Blatchford Lands,’ which sonnen says supplies its energy in a climate-neutral manner.
According to the tech company, its battery technology will be used for load management, initially in the residential neighbourhood, followed by rapid scale-up.
Partners of the VPP include real estate developer Landmark Homes, municipal utility and grid operator EPCOR, electricity provider Solartility, and the University of Alberta.
In the first step, 100 residential units will be equipped with a sonnenBatterie, which will then be networked to form the VPP with an output of approximately 0.5MW/2MWh.
sonnen hopes to expand over the next three years to approximately 3,000 sonnenBatteries with an output of 18MW/60MWh.
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Households in the VPP will gain access to a dynamic electricity tariff optimised with the sonnenBatterie and the VPP, which sonnen says will be complemented by future revenue from stabilising the local power grid, such as reducing local peak loads or load management.
Additionally, the storage systems provide every household with a secure power supply in the event of a power outage.
Commenting in a release was Oliver Koch, CEO of sonnen: “The unbeatable cost advantages of solar power can only be unleashed if it is intelligently controlled and stored.
“Then it is a stable energy source that can be easily and cost-effectively integrated into our power grids, so that everyone can benefit. The fact that we are now laying the foundation for another virtual power plant in Canada demonstrates the international success of our technology.”
Canada is the second market sonnen is entering in the Americas. In the US, sonnen already operates several VPPs, including in Utah, Texas, California, and Puerto Rico.
