December 2, 2022 - Merus Power
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Electricity harvested from the wind
In recent years, a substantial increase in wind farm construction has been seen in Finland. The reasons behind this are clear: Wind power is a renewable and nearly emission-free form of energy with production costs that enable large-scale energy production. An excellent example is a 21 MW wind farm in Ii, Viinamäki, Finland owned by Exilion, which has been successfully producing electricity since 2019.
However, the electricity production of wind farms varies greatly depending on the weather conditions. This makes it rather difficult to predict electricity production and consumption. It also increases the need to build flexible capacity in the grid. Fortunately, a new, rapidly developing technology is here to help – battery energy storage systems.
The difference between battery and energy storage
Even for many professionals in the field, energy storage still means batteries. In reality, modern energy storage is a complex system and a critical component in a wind power company.
“The easiest way to explain energy storage is to compare it to an electric car. The battery is an important component in an electric car, but it does not make it a car. This is exactly how it is with an energy storage system as well”, says Jonna Kannosto, Marketing and Communications Director of Merus Power.
“The basic task of the energy storage system is to support the wind power plant by storing electricity. Nowadays it also has other functions. The energy storage can support the grid by balancing production and consumption by participating in the Finnish Transmission System Operator’s (Fingrid) Frequency Reserve market. In addition, it can participate in energy arbitrage as well as correcting the error between production forecast and true production”, elaborates Heikki Ylänen, Senior Sales Manager of Merus Power.
Earning revenue with energy storage
The increasing production of renewable energy has already significantly changed the nature of the electricity market. This is because wind and solar power are connected to the grid without a large rotating mass, unlike traditional power plants. The inertia of the electricity network decreases and therefore changes in consumption or production can cause faster and more substantial changes in the frequency of the electric network. An electricity production and consumption capacity that can be quickly activated and deactivated is needed to compensate for this.
“Our energy storage solution is able to react to the needs of the electric grid in 0.1 seconds, even though the market requirement currently is 0.7 seconds”, says Heikki Ylänen.
Tommi Riski, Exilion’s Investment Manager sees many new business opportunities. “Energy storage has many different earning channels, and the best solution is to combine them. The electricity grid company currently has a need for faster-reacting reserve power, so the main way of earning revenue at the moment is to participate in the grid company’s reserves. In the future, the revenue generation model may change.”
The core of energy storage is in its software
The goal of the Finnish government is to raise the share of renewable energy of consumption to at least 51% by the year 2030. Finland also has a goal to be carbon neutral by 2035 and be the first fossil-free welfare society in the world. With the currently known forms of production, these goals cannot be achieved without large investments in smart energy storage systems. The method of storing energy may vary, but the most crucial component is always the brain – the software on how to use the storage. That’s where Finnish Merus Power sees its opportunity.
“We are a domestic company, and we design and manufacture our own energy storage systems and intelligent software. We can quickly make the changes that take tomorrow’s requirements and needs into account in existing systems as well”, Heikki Ylänen explains.
Tommi Riski is satisfied with the responsiveness of Merus Power. “Merus Power has helped us a lot to get to different markets and perform the tests required by the grid companies. The cooperation has been successful.”
The new rules of the future’s electricity markets
At the moment, various scenarios are being speculated about the future of the electricity market. In Finland, Fingrid has published its electricity system vision, presenting four different scenarios for the development of electricity production and consumption for 2035 and 2045. The Nordic electricity market already has several different levels of power reserves in use. In the future, the market is expected to renew at an even faster pace. The latest innovation is the Fast Frequency Reserve (FFR) market introduced in 2020.
“The electricity market is in transition, and it is essential to keep up with the times. We are constantly looking at different markets together with the help of Merus Power to find new earning opportunities”, explains Tommi Riski.
The future’s electricity market is a mystery to everyone, but one thing is certain, renewable energy is here to stay. Merus Power’s vision is crystal clear: “Merus Power’s solutions enable the growth of renewable energy. This is how we support the ongoing energy revolution”, concludes Heikki Ylänen.