Project Summary
Heat pumps are key technology for decarbonising the UK's building stock, but widespread deployment will have significant impacts on local electricity networks.
HeatNet aims to demonstrate how the coordination of heat pump operation using advanced optimisation algorithms can help address network operators’ challenges. Our aim is to develop an independent service offering to networks to accelerate the electrification of heat through new strategies that improve voltage quality and network reliability.
The project will develop novel machine learning tools to manage power loads from heat pumps and help regulate voltage-drops at the grid-edge while making sure our customers can keep warm.
Innovation Justification
HeatNet will explore the opportunity to regulate voltage drops and limit the need for LV-network reinforcement by managing multiple heat-pumps connected at a substation level using advanced optimisation algorithms.
The project aims to develop a novel, independent service procured by DNOs to improve network operations and planning, increase efficiency and reduce cost, whilst helping to accelerate decarbonisation of residential heating systems. The service would ensure thermal comfort is maintained across all homes.
Smart control systems are already being used by suppliers and aggregators to manage distributed energy resources to provide flexibility services, reduce network stress and maintain grid stability. However, this level of modelling and understanding of voltage dependency has not yet been undertaken in the UK. Managing domestic thermal systems presents very different challenges to managing electrical loads such as EV charge-points or batteries. To be acceptable, smart thermal control systems must minimise consumer inconvenience and establish service contracting that sustains comfortable internal temperatures.
HeatNet builds directly Passiv UK’s experience in heat-pump smart control who have developed unique predictive heat-pump optimisation algorithms and home-heating/energy modelling capabilities that enable quantitative evaluation of highly complex dynamic scenarios.
Early proof of concept suggests that Passiv’s smart-control algorithms can calculate the optimal residential demand shift required to reduce both peak demand and voltage drop across a network to maintain statutory limits. This optimisation would be designed to maintain in-home temperatures (defined by SLA or similar) whilst also minimising network stress.
HeatNet’s approach to optimising domestic heat-pumps and local network stability is highly innovative and could not have been funded elsewhere within the price control or as part of business-as-usual activities. Given the phased nature of the SIF, HeatNet is well-suited as it will undertake a feasibility study ahead of further trial or deployment. Similarly, the scale is limited to technical feasibility as appropriate for SIF Discovery. Once established, future phases will engage consumers and relevant stakeholders, (e.g. heat-pump manufacturers, developers) to assess appetite.
Readiness Levels have been summarised as follows:
· Technology readiness: Discovery will enable progression from initial proof of concept (TRL3) to validation (TRL4)
· Integration readiness: Initial levels are low (0), but with scope to modify and transpose existing specifications (e.g. PAS1879 (4)) during future phases.
Commercial readiness: Discovery will develop an initial understanding of the commercial opportunity (1).
Impacts and Benefits
The pre-innovation baseline is that heat-pumps are installed by customers and the DNO has little visibility of their voltage impact on neighbouring customers. It is expected that customer benefits will be realised using HeatNet’s optimised load shifting algorithms between localised clusters of heat-pumps on an LV network using smart controls to help reduce seasonal network stress and voltage drop challenges. The benefits identified so far can be tracked using the following metrics:
Financial - Future reduction in the cost of operating the network.
· Average avoided network upgrade costs to the DNO of the HeatNet optimised solution compared to uncoordinated and unmanaged installations
· Better-informed voltage management will lead to reduction in cost from resolving voltage issues, associated site visits, and obtaining a more resilient network
Financial - cost savings per annum on energy bills for consumers
· Long-term savings by reduced distribution use of system (DUoS) costs from reduced socialised costs for network upgrades.
Environmental - carbon reduction -- indirect CO2 savings
· By having a well-managed and prepared network, HeatNet can facilitate faster uptake of heat pump installations ensuring the carbon reductions from these LCTs are delivered sooner.
Metric: Number of HeatNet optimised homes adopted over time (number of households) and CO2 savings from optimised load shifting.
New to market - services
· Although the detail of the commercial mechanisms for HeatNet are out of scope for the Discovery Phase, the project intends to define and monitor the roles and benefits for service providers (suppliers, aggregators) and users (DNO/DSO) in subsequent phases.
· Number of homes benefiting from the HeatNet service, and overall consumer satisfaction with HeatNet optimised connections compared to current unmanaged approach
The Discovery Phase will validate high-level assumptions and identify additional opportunities for benefits beyond those described. The details of potential cost savings to the network, consumer savings, environmental benefits, and opportunities for a HeatNet service will be explored further and quantified during the Alpha and Beta Phases. All benefits are linked to the deployment of the HeatNet solution as a commercial proposition following Beta Phase, although some may be realised during the course of the Project.
