National Grid ESO advances digital twin-focussed energy system data sharing infrastructure in GB

Britain’s National Grid ESO is leading the development of a digital twin-focussed energy system data sharing infrastructure as part of its ‘Virtual Energy System’ programme.

Through a memorandum of understanding with the government-led National Digital Twin Programme, the two parties intend to collaborate to ensure there is alignment and interoperability between the energy system data sharing infrastructure and the latter’s cross-sector integration architecture that is under development.

The initial focus is on developing an integrated high level technical design and architecture identifying the interfaces between components of the future energy system data sharing infrastructure.

It also aims to scope the technical, process and policy requirements for achieving and developing an integrated minimum viable product that both programmes can use to practically demonstrate connected digital twins.

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“We are excited to sign this Memorandum of Understanding with the National Digital Twin Programme to look at the components for developing an energy sector data sharing infrastructure,” commented Shubhi Rajnish, Chief Information Officer at the ESO.

“This collaboration is a significant step for energy digitalisation and the goal of enabling secure and resilient exchange of data across the sector, to support the delivery of a zero carbon energy system in Great Britain by 2035.”

National Grid ESO’s Virtual Energy System programme has the ambition to enable the creation of an ecosystem of connected digital twins of the entire energy system of Great Britain, operating in synchronisation to the physical system.

It is proposed to include representations of electricity and gas assets and link-ups to other sectors to enable secure and resilient sharing of energy data across organisational and sector boundaries and in turn to facilitate complex scenario modelling to deliver optimal whole-system decision making.

The programme was launched in December 2021 and in March 2022 National Grid ESO was awarded funding to develop the principles and a technical framework, which was undertaken with Arup, the Energy Systems Catapult and Icebreaker One.

Since November 2022 a common framework demonstrator has been under development, which is planned for showcasing the benefits during the current year.

Various investigations and recommendations in Britain have focussed on the need for energy sector-wide data sharing, as indeed they have with the focus on digitalisation elsewhere and in other sectors.

The National Digital Twin Programme, led by the government’s Department for Business and Trade is aimed to grow national capability in digital twin technologies with its primary purpose to develop the standards, processes and tools that will build the foundation of a functioning market in digital twins.