Periodic Reporting for period 1 - SERENE (Sustainable and Integrated Energy Systems in Local Communities)
Berichtszeitraum: 2021-05-01 bis 2022-10-31
To accelerate the transition of Europe’s electricity system to a more decentralised structure, SERENE aims to demonstrate cost-effective and customer-centric solutions for effectively integrating different energy system carriers for the sustainable development of local communities to meet their energy needs from local sources of renewable energy.
The main objectives of SERENE are to demonstrate smart technological, socio-economic, institutional, and environmental solutions to enable the local management of integrated energy systems and networks, the utilisation of higher shares of local renewable energy and active consumer engagement in neighbourhoods in three EU countries: Denmark, the Netherlands and Poland.
SERENE will explore options to work towards activating locally available distributed energy generation options, demand response resources and energy storage technologies in energy domains such as electricity, heat, water treatment and transport. It will focus on developing attractive citizen-centred business models, leading to innovative solutions that are market ready and thereby replicable in other energy communities across Europe and beyond.
The ultimate goal is to establish locally integrated “energy islands” in the different villages of Skanderborg (Denmark), Olst (the Netherlands) and Przywidz (Poland). Such “energy islands” will contribute to the decarbonisation of local energy systems via the optimal integration of multi-energy carriers through smart control and the balancing of systems and grids at the local level. This approach will also increase the levels of renewable energy use, thereby enhancing the environmental, social and economic conditions of the citizens and establishing more business and trade.
The experiences gained at the demonstration sites will be analysed and evaluated for replicability across Europe.Technical benchmark models will be established alongside business models and evaluated against the different challenges identified.The levels of user involvement and their interest to participate will be evaluated from the geographical, social, environmental and economic conditions.
The main objectives of SERENE are to demonstrate smart technological, socio-economic, institutional, and environmental solutions to enable the local management of integrated energy systems and networks, the utilisation of higher shares of local renewable energy and active consumer engagement in neighbourhoods in three EU countries: Denmark, the Netherlands and Poland.
SERENE will explore options to work towards activating locally available distributed energy generation options, demand response resources and energy storage technologies in energy domains such as electricity, heat, water treatment and transport. It will focus on developing attractive citizen-centred business models, leading to innovative solutions that are market ready and thereby replicable in other energy communities across Europe and beyond.
The ultimate goal is to establish locally integrated “energy islands” in the different villages of Skanderborg (Denmark), Olst (the Netherlands) and Przywidz (Poland). Such “energy islands” will contribute to the decarbonisation of local energy systems via the optimal integration of multi-energy carriers through smart control and the balancing of systems and grids at the local level. This approach will also increase the levels of renewable energy use, thereby enhancing the environmental, social and economic conditions of the citizens and establishing more business and trade.
The experiences gained at the demonstration sites will be analysed and evaluated for replicability across Europe.Technical benchmark models will be established alongside business models and evaluated against the different challenges identified.The levels of user involvement and their interest to participate will be evaluated from the geographical, social, environmental and economic conditions.
SERENE is coordinated by Aalborg University, Denmark with 12 other partners from industry, community representatives, energy utilities, public and research institutions. The first 18 months has focused on establishing the requirements for the systems, setting up the architectures, control schemes and grid analysis applicable for the demonstrators. Common technical suggestions for models and controls are established for sector coupled energy systems, capable of providing demand response and flexibility to ensure optimal energy usage.
The University of Twente in the Netherlands has been focused on the analysis and mapping of the socio-economic, governance and regulatory obstacles for local energy system transition in all three countries. In addition, a baseline survey has been created to capture the viewpoints of participants from all demonstrations, so that any comparative factors as well as differences can be identified. It will be rolled out in the different communities and will help track any changes and impacts from the social innovations made by the project.
The Danish demonstration will enable the villages of Hylke and Låsby in Skanderborg Municipality to become CO2-neutral, “energy island” communities. The transition of the existing heating supply from fossil fuels, to heating from heat pumps with increased self-consumption of energy from renewable sources will take place in close collaboration with citizens and local stakeholders. After some unexpected delays due to complications with developers and local planning laws, the project is back on track. The testing and installation activities, including the development of a simulation tool for dimensioning the energy system, and control structure are ongoing.
The Dutch demonstrator involves two sites, the Aardehuizen community with 24 houses and the neighbourhood of Vriendenerf, which consists of 12 houses, both in Olst village. Work has included the installation of Energy Monitoring Systems (EMS) in several homes in Aardehuizen. In addition, the infrastructure for the EV charging station has been installed in Vriendenerf along with a software solution, developed by the Dutch partner LOQ, to control the EV chargers. This software interfaces with the algorithms developed by the University of Twente and provides a higher-level optimisation algorithm to allow the EV charging to be more coordinated with the neighbourhoods consumption of and generation of renewable energy. This is critical in terms of identifying current electrical consumption patterns and determining the future optimisation of energy balance through the smart control of the time shiftable loads available in the neighbourhoods.
The Polish demonstrator has been focused on installing smart electricity meters to identify the peaks and troughs of household energy consumption. The aim is to combine the profiles of multiple households and perform an in-depth analysis of short-term energy usage to provide insights into problems such as blackouts. The profiles can be compared against the energy-generation of the photovoltaic (PV) installations to determine the extent to which solar energy can meet (or not) demand. Work has been conducted into the analysis and optimisation of energy usage by the technological process of sewage treatment in the new local sewage treatment plant. In addition, the introduction of two energy storage units with EV chargers has enabled the first e-bus for the local school.
In terms of the project’s communication, dissemination, exploitation and replication activities, the strategy has been developed via the project’s Dissemination and Exploitation Board (DEB). In addition, the project’s website and LinkedIn profile is live and regularly updated. Three e-newsletters have been published, a leaflet, roll-up stands and posters. In M12 a press release was published in English, Polish and Danish. The project has also applied for support from the Horizon Results Booster service.
Partners have participated at several events, including the Project Coordinator's keynote speech at the Global Summit and Expo on Sustainable and Renewable Energy in Denmark in June 2022. SERENE attended the 3rd Asia Pacific Conference on Industrial Engineering and Operations Management in Malaysia (September, 2022). Cihan Gerçek, from Saxion University of Applied Sciences, was among the panellists . The project has produced five publications from papers presented at international conferences, including the 38th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference in September 2021, the 57th International Universities Power Engineering Conference in August 2022, the International Conference on Smart Energy Systems and Technologies in September 2022 and the IEEE PES Innovative Smart Grid Technologies Conference Europe in October 2022. Finally, an article on SERENE, written by the Project Coordinator was published in the September 2022 issue (no.11) of the Innovation Platform magazine.
The University of Twente in the Netherlands has been focused on the analysis and mapping of the socio-economic, governance and regulatory obstacles for local energy system transition in all three countries. In addition, a baseline survey has been created to capture the viewpoints of participants from all demonstrations, so that any comparative factors as well as differences can be identified. It will be rolled out in the different communities and will help track any changes and impacts from the social innovations made by the project.
The Danish demonstration will enable the villages of Hylke and Låsby in Skanderborg Municipality to become CO2-neutral, “energy island” communities. The transition of the existing heating supply from fossil fuels, to heating from heat pumps with increased self-consumption of energy from renewable sources will take place in close collaboration with citizens and local stakeholders. After some unexpected delays due to complications with developers and local planning laws, the project is back on track. The testing and installation activities, including the development of a simulation tool for dimensioning the energy system, and control structure are ongoing.
The Dutch demonstrator involves two sites, the Aardehuizen community with 24 houses and the neighbourhood of Vriendenerf, which consists of 12 houses, both in Olst village. Work has included the installation of Energy Monitoring Systems (EMS) in several homes in Aardehuizen. In addition, the infrastructure for the EV charging station has been installed in Vriendenerf along with a software solution, developed by the Dutch partner LOQ, to control the EV chargers. This software interfaces with the algorithms developed by the University of Twente and provides a higher-level optimisation algorithm to allow the EV charging to be more coordinated with the neighbourhoods consumption of and generation of renewable energy. This is critical in terms of identifying current electrical consumption patterns and determining the future optimisation of energy balance through the smart control of the time shiftable loads available in the neighbourhoods.
The Polish demonstrator has been focused on installing smart electricity meters to identify the peaks and troughs of household energy consumption. The aim is to combine the profiles of multiple households and perform an in-depth analysis of short-term energy usage to provide insights into problems such as blackouts. The profiles can be compared against the energy-generation of the photovoltaic (PV) installations to determine the extent to which solar energy can meet (or not) demand. Work has been conducted into the analysis and optimisation of energy usage by the technological process of sewage treatment in the new local sewage treatment plant. In addition, the introduction of two energy storage units with EV chargers has enabled the first e-bus for the local school.
In terms of the project’s communication, dissemination, exploitation and replication activities, the strategy has been developed via the project’s Dissemination and Exploitation Board (DEB). In addition, the project’s website and LinkedIn profile is live and regularly updated. Three e-newsletters have been published, a leaflet, roll-up stands and posters. In M12 a press release was published in English, Polish and Danish. The project has also applied for support from the Horizon Results Booster service.
Partners have participated at several events, including the Project Coordinator's keynote speech at the Global Summit and Expo on Sustainable and Renewable Energy in Denmark in June 2022. SERENE attended the 3rd Asia Pacific Conference on Industrial Engineering and Operations Management in Malaysia (September, 2022). Cihan Gerçek, from Saxion University of Applied Sciences, was among the panellists . The project has produced five publications from papers presented at international conferences, including the 38th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference in September 2021, the 57th International Universities Power Engineering Conference in August 2022, the International Conference on Smart Energy Systems and Technologies in September 2022 and the IEEE PES Innovative Smart Grid Technologies Conference Europe in October 2022. Finally, an article on SERENE, written by the Project Coordinator was published in the September 2022 issue (no.11) of the Innovation Platform magazine.
During the next reporting period, the project will be focused on further development of the technical models and control methods to be applied, and the implementation of these at the demonstration sites. Further, the project will continue its user engagement and perform surveys on their understanding and satisfaction of the setup technologies.