CORDIS

"FLEXCoop realises a ""Demand Response tool suite and framework enabling energy cooperatives to become aggregators"".
It will equip energy cooperatives with innovative tools to exploit consumers' flexibility as dynamic Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) providing balancing and ancillary resources toward grid stability and alleviation of network constraints.
The topic is located in the ""IT for Energy"" sector in the frame of: ""Next generation innovative technologies enabling smart grids, storage and energy system integration with increasing share of renewables: distribution network"".

The full title is ""Democratising the energy market through introduction of innovative demand response tools and novel business models for energy cooperatives.""
It is has 36 month duration, started October 2017, and consists of 13 partners.

Small/medium consumers are still excluded from energy markets. Reasons:
- Lack of smart and real-time metering infrastructure
- Absence of a robust regulatory framework in most EU Countries
- Non-viable market offerings for small consumers

Concerning Demand Respond Stakeholder Value Chain Empowerment Automation is required for ensuring the satisfaction of availability and activation requirements.

Objectives:
1. Safeguard distribution grid reliability and the transition to a more fossil-free energy future through explicit automated demand response strategies on the basis of aggregated flexibility utilization
2. Enable intelligence enhancement of Smart Home Systems with the integration of ICT-enabled human-centric DR optimization and the provision of innovative services to prosumers
3. Democratizing energy markets, through the introduction of residential prosumers as active players in energy markets and the transparent sharing of benefits achieved between the stakeholders involved
4. Deliver an open standards-based modular solution that ensures end-to-end interoperability between smart grids, energy management systems and smart home devices and holds a high replication potential around the EU
5. Tackle major market entry barriers for prosumers with the introduction of suitable business models for energy cooperatives
6. Promote the adoption of the FLEXCoop solution as a next-generation demand response optimization framework through intense dissemination and knowledge transfer












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FLEXCoop fulfilled the work plan and delivered all related deliverables. FLEXCoop accomplished the “End-user Requirement and Business Model Definition” and the “FLEXCoop System Architecture Design”. In Month 18, the project accomplished the “Modelling Baseline Establishment”. In the first six months we set up the “Public Awareness, Disseminations and Engagement Planning.”
The implementation methodology of the FLEXCoop project adopts an iterative research and development approach.
This consisted in a) the design (Architectural Design, Demand Response framework specifications, DR strategies and business models) b) the configuration and the c) initial pilot deployment.
In the preceding Inception Phase FLEXCoop set up the first versions of the Project Management Plan, the Quality Management Plan, the Innovation Management Plan , the Data Management Plan , and the Dissemination and Communication Plan. FLEXCoop acquired the actual information on the End-user and Business Requirements . Additionally FLEXCoop gathered the specific regulations related to different energy areas concerned, at EU Level and in the member States in which the project is going to be executed, consolidated the Requirements Analysis and Specifications regarding the EU-wide Interoperability Standards, highlighted different possible business models, taking into account requirements from the pilots. The first FLEXCoop Research and Development Iteration included the System Architecture and the Conceptual Models.
They were distinguished as “Design, Configuration and Deployment” blocks and can be regarded as the core phases of the project and they delivered key scientific and technical results namely: the FLEXCoop Performance Measurement and Verification Methodology (PMV) specifications, the FLEXCoop Framework Architecture, the FLEXCoop Modelling and Forecasting Specifications embracing the Demand Flexibility Modelling and Forecasting Deliverables Series.

At the end of the first Reporting Period in Month 18, the requirements collected during the “Inception-phase” served as guidance for the investigation of research techniques, which are now being realized through the implementation of the FLEXCoop prototype and demonstrators.
In the Reporting Period we set-up the Architectural Design, the Open Smart Box Prototype Design and its Prototype, the Common Information Model, and the architecture design of all relevant Components within the FLEXCoop Middleware as well as, the Security Architecture.
The semantically enhanced FLEXCoop Marketplace and the rest of the system components defined in WP5 and WP6 are being designed. Furthermore, the testing and the integration of the FLEXCoop components pilots operation and evaluation is ready to be implemented.

FLEXCoop implemented the modelling findings into the FLEXCoop Demand Flexibility Profiling component.
FLEXCoop follows a “Pilot and Use Case driven implementation approach” where the investigation of advanced techniques and the development of tools is guided by the users (cooperatives) requirements.
Consequently, the FLEXCoop framework will be validated in the two energy cooperatives serving as demonstrators/pilot sites, located in Spain and the Netherlands. Both are on the prosumer side – and aggregator side. This will enable the extraction of valuable conclusions, policy recommendations and market reform requirements addressing diverse political, market/ business.
The work on defining the details and specificities of use cases based on the business scenarios is under current development. FLEXCoop has set-up a framework for validation and renumeration to be integrated into the FLEXCoop-system.
The operation and evaluation of pilots has already started with actual installations already performed.

In the next Reporting Period, FLEXCoop plans to carry out pilot site validation tests and experiments. Soon the “FLEXCoop Evaluation Framework and Respective Validation Scenarios” will be released.The FLEXCoop R&D cycle is planned to be repeated and the project will be concluded by final phase on Business Innovation. The second R&D phase will reach the overall system architecture, finalize the implementation of the selected business cases with the components developed and show that the conceptual models that will drive the forthcoming phases interact. The FLEXCoop end phase is focussing on Business Innovation. IN RP2 FLEXCoop will define the exploitation agreements between the component owners as joint results and defining the final business models, secure the results to be exploitable and will pronounce relevant policy recommendations.
FLEXCoop will support in discovering demand-flexibility potentials and strenghen the role of the individual prosumers within the energy market.