Road to Power
| Network operators |
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|---|---|
| Funding mechanism | Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) |
| Duration | Mar 2024 - Jun 2024 |
| Project expenditure | £158K |
| Research area | Optimised Assets and Practices |
Project Summary
The street and road works sector faces a pivotal transition to net zero by 2030, decarbonising 7.8TWh of energy demand across 700,000 major works, annually. The challenges presented by this transition are uncertain and unique; the energy demands are high, temporary, non-static and have inflexible charging times. Road to Power will forecast future consumption and consider the infrastructural needs for this transformation. In Discovery, it will specify tools to facilitate obtaining temporary grid connections and predicting the infrastructural impact of works. Additionally, it will investigate alternative methods for providing temporary grid connections.
In an era of rapid transition, the street and road works sector faces a pivotal shift towards net zero, amidst significant uncertainty and a massive energy demand of 7.8TWh across 700,000 major works annually. This transformation, exemplified by National Highways' ambitious 2030 target, is fast-paced whilst simultaneously unpredictable in terms of future fuel technologies. The potential mix of battery electric, hydrogen powered, biofuels, or other yet-to-emerge technologies poses a considerable challenge, especially in its impact on energy networks. Our project tackles these uncertainties head-on, aligning with the Innovation Challenge of Facilitating faster and cheaper network transformation through whole-system network planning. We aim to comprehensively assess and forecast the sector's energy demands, exploring various technological scenarios and their implications on network infrastructure. The initiative's key focus is the development of tools to navigate this uncharted territory. These tools will facilitate obtaining temporary grid connections and predicting the infrastructural impact of works. Additionally, we are committed to investigating alternative methods for providing temporary grid connections, drawing on insights from projects like Take Charge. This proactive approach is vital for informed strategic planning, ensuring cost-effective decisions are made to deliver the telecoms, water, energy and road networks consumers need for a decarbonised future.
While extensive planning has been carried out by utility and highway authorities to achieve the transition to net zero, little attention has been paid to repercussions on electricity networks. The future power source of plant machinery remains uncertain—whether it be hydrogen or electricity is yet to be determined, and may be dependent on use case and availability of ‘green hydrogen’. Ambitious decarbonisation goals set by corporations, regulators, and governments, risk creating considerable pressure on the electricity grid due to increased demands from the sector.
This uncertainty is well-suited for the Discovery phase of the Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF). Although various potential solutions exist, pinpointing the most effective one is challenging without a comprehensive understanding of the problems and obstacles that the sector presents.
This project aims to augment ongoing research in the sector, particularly studies exploring the emissions from street and road works and their routes to achieving net zero (as part of the Road to Net Zero project). This work will focus specifically on the challenges posed to the energy networks.
The innovative aspect of this project lies in its endeavour to understand and quantify the yet-unknown scale of the issue, identify potential pathways that the sector could follow, (including least, or no-regret investment opportunities) and develop tools to assist end-users and the network when the transition to large-scale electrified projects commences. Having processes in place at the start will make this evolution more efficient.
Existing self-service connection tools (e.g. Connect tools developed by EA Technology for various DNOs) could be expanded on in an Alpha or Beta phase to understand the impact on the network of the upcoming technology shift, or to enable assessment of temporary grid connections for the street and road works sector. This proposal (Discovery phase) is to specify the proposed tool rather than develop it. As such, its TRL is 3, however as it will likely be built as an extension of existing tools, development time will be reduced compared to a completely unique development.
Understanding of Future Network Loads: A comprehensive analysis will forecast temporary street works loads added to the network over the upcoming years. NGEDs region will be used as a case study but this could be applied to any DNO. A detailed review of the existing temporary connections process will also be undertaken to understand if it is suitable for this use-case.
Problem Assessment: Two areas will be explored. First, analysis of the charging and usage profiles for machinery used in street and road works, identifying potential issues. Second, understand the geographic problems unique to this sector, including varying non-static locations where network access may be limited or challenging.
Technological Solutions: The project will identify feasible technological solutions that can be developed in Alpha and Beta phases. This could include a tool for enabling temporary grid connections specific to works and a tool designed for scheduling and optioneering based on network conditions. The scheduling may be based on seasonal or daily loading based on the forecasted loads. The optioneering element could be used to decide where along the works charging station(s) are located, assess the need for local storage vs a temporary connection, or identifying whether any flexibility services/peer to peer agreements could be made with local businesses.
Dissemination Plan: To ensure that the deliverables fulfil the requirements of the sector, stakeholder engagement will be utilised throughout all phases of the project. The project team will organise two stakeholder workshops during the project Discovery phase. These will be convened online to maximise attendance and will include key players from the street workers sector, known to the project team via the ‘Road to Net Zero' project. The first workshop will be used to test, verify and receive feedback on the phase 1 ‘Understanding of Future Network Loads’. The second workshop will be used to receive feedback on the inputs and outputs specified in the ‘Technological Solutions’ phase.
The project will have two major milestones.
- After month 1: Understanding the problem: Modelling of potential future loads as well as a detailed review of the problems that will arise.
- After month 2: Understanding the solution: Detailed specification of the potential tool(s) which will be required help the sector.
Competitive Markets: EA technology is not the only provider of self-service tools so this project will not undermine the development of competitive markets.