Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Mathematics ITWMIn the Schoonschip waterfront neighborhood on the Johan van Hasselt Canal, north of Amsterdam, 30 floating houses with 46 residential units have joined together to form an energy community. With our innovative technologies, residents are designing their energy supply collectively and sustainably.
Schoonschip: Blick von oben
Energy Management in the Floating Residential District
Making energy supply sustainable and as affordable as possible – the Schoonschip neighborhood is working together to optimize its energy consumption and purchases.
© Isabel Nabuurs
Innovative Energy Management for Europe’s Most Sustainable Floating Neighborhood
Own Microgrid, Electricity Trading, and Flexibility Marketing for a Sustainable Energy Supply
Energy Community With Its Own Microgrid
In addition to photovoltaic systems, heat pumps, and battery storage, this is made possible by our Amperix Energy Management System. This allows the community to maximize the use of its self-generated electricity and collectively reduce the amount of electricity that still needs to be purchased. The houses are networked with each other in a microgrid: if the photovoltaic system of one house produces more energy than the residents are currently consuming, another household can use the surplus electricity. In addition, the community also has a connection to the power grid – one for the entire residential project.
This communal grid connection is smaller than usual and only serves to protect Schoonschip during peak consumption times, when battery storage is empty, and when there is not enough sun. The energy management system we have developed uses the battery storage units to reduce grid consumption peaks and thus grid usage fees. This is because the annual fee for the shared grid connection is based on the peak power consumption, not just the total amount of electricity consumed.
Purchasing and Selling Electricity on the Day-Ahead Market
Thanks to our technology, the Schoonschip community is connected to the day-ahead market. Here, hourly or, more recently, quarter-hourly energy prices are negotiated one day in advance. This can lead to periods of low and high prices. These price fluctuations can be exploited by the energy community. This requires price-optimized control of the battery storage systems and heat pumps. We have developed such a price optimization system for the energy community.
To do this, the community's total energy consumption or surplus is calculated, taking into account household consumption, local generation, and the energy requirements of the heat pumps. In addition to the electricity produced by the photovoltaic systems, the storage units are filled with the cheapest possible purchased electricity according to the calculated schedules and discharged during expensive periods. Unlike in Germany, the sale of energy to the grid is also permitted in the Netherlands.
Visualization of battery activity on the day-ahead market: Positive powers show charging at low prices, while negative powers show discharging to avoid expensive grid purchases.
Flexibility Trading on the Imbalance Market
The community also participates in the Dutch imbalance market. Every quarter of an hour, a trader decides whether there is a worthwhile marketing opportunity for the battery storage systems and heat pumps on the imbalance market. The battery storage systems can both absorb and release energy, while the heat pumps only absorb surplus energy and relieve the capacity of the battery storage systems.
The connections to both markets enable Schoonschip residents to make even better use of their capacities and flexibility and generate additional revenue. Our energy management system also ensures that the local grid connection limitations of the shared grid connection are not exceeded.
Project Duration and Funding
The »Open VPP: Pilot Flexibilisering« project will run until December 31, 2024.
The »Open VPP: Pilot Flexibilisering« project is funded by the RVO (Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland), the Dutch Enterprise Agency, on behalf of the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs. [only available in Dutch]