Project Summary
Pweru Cymru yn adnewyddol (Powering Wales Renewably, PWR) brings together the Welsh Government, power system users and network operators who collectively span the energy system value-chain. Together, they will collaboratively identify the innovation priorities required to support the delivery of the Welsh Government's decarbonisation plans, prepare for a net zero power system and deliver net benefits to Wales's citizens and communities.
Through delivery of a digital twin of the whole Welsh transmission and distribution system combined with other datasets, PWR will provide a digital common interface to accelerate the integration of renewable generation and decarbonised demand into the electricity system.
Innovation Justification
Pweru Cymru yn adnewyddol (Powering Wales Renewably, PWR) is aligned to Challenge 2, "Preparing for a Net-Zero Power System". Additionally, PWR makes a positive contribution to Challenge 4, "Accelerating Decarbonisation of Major Energy Demands".
The objective for PWR is to enable preparation for a Net-Zero Power System by accelerating integration of renewable generation and decarbonised demand into the electricity system.
PWR is use-case based, designed in collaboration with power system stakeholders and the Welsh Government. The project combines three strategic industry innovation pathways to business-as-usual, by delivering:
- The first published view of the existing network status using multiple industry and external datasets correlated by an intelligent whole-system network model.
- The first whole-system (Transmission and Distribution; T&D), near-real-time representation of flexibility requirements, availability and operational dispatch.
- The first ground-level comparison of Local Area Energy Plan's, T&D network development plans, and the connection queue and its management.
PWR goes beyond incremental innovation because, enabled by the involvement of the Welsh Government, it convened stakeholders from across the electricity value-chain in a series of bilateral and multilateral workshops during Discovery. This provided a common understanding of their needs and the identification of problem barriers (as identified in our response to Question 2), that are inhibiting progress towards a net-zero electricity system. These insights have enabled the use-cases and datasets within PWR to be refined and prioritised for delivery within Alpha and to realise early value.
Based on the insights and consensus achieved, the Alpha Phase will deliver a novel ICT asset that uniquely integrates, for the first time, datasets and digital technologies to create a digital twin of the T&D networks at national scale, across Wales. The twin will address the stakeholder prioritised use-cases and prove the interoperability of the datasets between multiple digital models in the electricity sector.
PWR is unaware of this type of integration having been achieved before in the electricity sector or at this scale to meet the specific innovations listed above.
PWR leverages prior investments by ESO in the Virtual Energy System and NGED and SPEN in their integrated distribution network models. Additionally, PWR uses learning from LCNF and NIC/NIA funded projects including FALCON, DINO and INM for the network asset data and digital models. PWR builds on TRANSITION and the FleX funded TraDER project to inform the data requirements for visibility of flexibility.
PWR is targeted at improving readiness levels:
- TRL : 3 to 5 in Alpha. Targeting 8 in Beta through the integration of multiple systems and data sources demonstrated at scale in an operational environment.
- IRL: 3 to 4 in Alpha. Targeting 7 in Beta by proving the integration between systems and the interoperability of the relevant data sets.
- CRL: 4 to 5 in Alpha. Targeting 8 at in Beta with the commercialisation strategy and business model agreed, and approach to scale-up established.
PWR is designed to meet the SIF objective of being able to scale for business-as-usual at the end of Beta. By targeting Wales at a national scale, the lessons from PWR are expected to enable it to scale to benefit the whole of the British system whilst delivering the targeted benefits for Wales.
Funding through SIF provides the vehicle that has enabled stakeholders from across the power system value-chain to collaborate on the common objective of accelerating decarbonisation of the power system and being prepared for a net-zero power system in 2035, or earlier.
The counterfactual of "Do Nothing" is not an option as it provides no path to the realisation of the benefits that can only be delivered through a Digital Twin solution.
Impacts and Benefits
Value
- Net Benefit across Wales in 10 years following start of ED2: £182m (NPV)
- Net Benefit across GB in 10 years following start of ED2: £1.89bn (NPV)
Sustainability
- CO2e emissions reduction across Wales to 2035: 2.13 million tonnes
- CO2e emissions reduction across GB to 2035: 21.2 million tonnes
- Financial - future reductions in the cost of operating the network
Reduction in the overall cost of flexibility services:
- Baseline: Baseline costs of flexibility will be established from Licence Condition 31E reporting, ENA Open Networks from procurement of flexibility services and from innovation projects including CrowdFlex and TRANSITION.
- Benefits: Cumulative net benefits will be calculated as a delta to the baseline with stated assumptions on how the Powering Wales Renewably solution will drive reduction in the cost of flexibility services through improved visibility and coordination leading to increased liquidity and competition in the markets for flexibility services.
- Metrics: Financial (£) based on £/MW and £/MWh dispatch.
Reduction in Constraint Payments:
- Baseline: Baseline will be established from the current levels of Constraint Payments.
- Benefits: Cumulative net benefits will be calculated as a delta to the baseline with stated assumptions on how the Powering Wales Renewably solution will reduce curtailment by identification of locations that benefit from deployment of alternate solutions, such as energy vector transformation and storage, once deployed. (£/MWh)
- Metrics: Financial (£) based on a reduction in Constraint Payments
2. Financial - cost savings per annum on energy bills for consumers
Reduction in wholesale electricity costs:
- Baseline: Baseline wholesale cost electricity will be established from market data.
- Benefits: Cumulative net benefits will be calculated as a delta to the baseline with stated assumptions on the price differential between fossil fuel generation and renewable generation that displaces it.
- Metrics: Financial (£) based on £/MWh and volume consumption for Wales.
Gross Benefit: £44.2m (Wales); £438.1m (GB) to 2035
3. Financial - cost savings per annum for users of network services
Improved utilisation of existing network capacity:
- Baseline: Baseline costs of Load Related Expenditure from business plans.
- Benefits: Cumulative net benefits will be calculated as a delta to the baseline with stated assumptions on how the Powering Wales Renewably solution will drive reduction in and deferral of Load Related Expenditure.
- Metrics: Financial (£) based.
Optimisation of T&D new network capacity:
- Baseline: Baseline costs of Load Related Expenditure from business plans.
- Benefits: Cumulative net benefits will be calculated as a delta to the baseline with stated assumptions on how the Powering Wales Renewably solution will drive an equivalent reduction in Load Related Expenditure through additional headroom.
- Metrics: Financial (£) based.
- Gross Benefit: £15.7m (Wales); £248.3m (GB) to 2035
Reduction in customer contributions for connections:
- Baseline: Baseline customer contributions from business plans.
- Benefits: Cumulative net benefits will be calculated as a delta to the baseline with stated assumptions on how the Powering Wales Renewably solution will drive reduction in customer contributions.
- Metrics: Financial (£) based.
- Gross Benefit: £11.2m (Wales); £20.0m (GB) to 2035
4. Environmental - carbon reduction -- direct CO2 savings per annum
Timely and economic connection of renewable generation:
- Baseline: Baseline plans for connection of renewable generation.
- Benefits: Cumulative net benefits will be calculated as a delta to the baseline with stated assumptions on how the Powering Wales Renewably solution will increase the connection of renewables.
- Metrics: Carbon (tonnes CO2).
- Net Benefit: 2.1m tonnes CO2e (Wales); 21.2m tonnes CO2e (GB) to 2035.
