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The Project

The project in brief

The main goal of the ALEXANDER project is to remove barriers that could block the full potential of the use of flexibility available in the low voltage (LV) network for the provision of system services (both long-term, as important source to guarantee security of supply, and short-term, as provider for balancing services). Consequently, better model representation of heterogeneous behaviour of LV flexibility for security assessments and improved algorithms for operational inclusion of LV flexibility for procurement and activation of system services will be developed. The developed innovations should allow for inclusion of the currently unused LV flexibility potential in an efficient way to deliver system services required in the near future.

Project Approach

The approach in ALEXANDER is based on three pillars.

  • Pillar 1 will undertake an in-depth analysis of consumer behaviour, including consumer preferences and bounded rationality. The results from a set of discrete choice experiments will bring fundamentally new insights with respect to 1) consumer-centric design of flexibility products and processes for system services and 2) perceived economic value by consumers of their flexibility.
  • Pillar 2 will identify technical and operational barriers for the provision of system services from LV networks. Innovative solutions for active system management will be developed, going further than existing state-of-the-art Artificial Intelligence (AI), big data, and power system engineering algorithms, integrating the consumer view as examined in pillar 1 from the design phase. An integrated and consumer-centric framework for LV flexibility procurement and activation for Belgium will be presented, integrating different flexibility mechanisms and appropriate coordination mechanisms between system operators. 
  • Pillar 3 will assess the impact of the developed models and solutions in pillar 1 and pillar 2 for the entire Belgian energy system, adopting a multi-stakeholder approach. The impact on security of supply (innovative and consumer-centric adequacy assessment) and balancing (e.g. strategies for a system service provision by commercial parties) are modelled and analysed.

Finally, the approach of the ALEXANDER project guarantees that, although disruptive by nature, the proposed innovations are aligned with the different stakeholder perspectives: overall system perspective, system operator perspective, service provider perspective and end-consumer perspective. This inclusive approach enables a higher acceptance level and integration of LV flexibility for the provision of system services, leading to increased security of supply and system stability.

Objectives

The ALEXANDER project has 7 main objectives that are covered by the 5 work packages (WP) in the project:

  1. To accelerate the transition towards an adequate, secure, and stable Belgian energy system with higher levels of renewable energy sources. (WP1 – WP5)
  2. To design a fundamentally new approach to understand consumer preferences in the context of flexibility provision for system purposes, using discrete choice experiments (WP2)
  3. To develop new operational models and algorithms for future proof active system management that allow cost-efficient flexibility procurement and activation in a grid safe and coordinated way (WP3)
  4. To develop new insights in the heterogeneous and bounded rational behaviour of end consumers which allow a better representation and exploration of the LV flexibility in models for improved security of supply (adequacy) (WP2&WP4)
  5. To identify the impact on flexibility provision for balancing by commercial parties in the context of large-scale deployment of LV flexibility. (WP4)
  6. To propose an integrated framework for Belgium for LV flexibility procurement and activation, considering the specific context (grid status, available flexibility) of the three regions (Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels) (WP4)
  7. To interact with relevant stakeholders (policy makers, system operators, technology providers, electricity generation companies, retailers, regulators, consumers…) on a regular basis to maximize the impact of the project (WP5)

 

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Work Packages

WP 1 - Project Management

This work package will be responsible for project management, reporting and risk management to ensure that the different partners work together in an efficient and constructive way to deliver results.

WP 2 - Consumer Barriers

The core objective of WP2 is:

  1. to deepen the fundamental understanding of the diverse preferences and decision-making processes of users in the context of investment in and the provision of LV resources and flexibility, both individually and in collective settings (e.g. energy communities) and
  2. to translate these insights into novel tractable models. This WP will combine theoretical frameworks from behavioural economics (such as prospect theory) with discrete choice experiments in the context of individual and collective flexibility provision

Throughout this WP, our focus is on residential consumers, as individual decision makers and in collective settings, as bounded rationality and heterogeneous preferences may be most outspoken in this user group.

WP 3 - Technical Barriers

WP3 complements and builds on WP2 by identifying the barriers to the use of LV flexibility for the provision of system services that are a result of technical and operational restrictions. Advanced methodologies and algorithms, based on artificial intelligence, big data, statistics, machine learning and power system engineering, are considered to identify when and where congestions would arise in the distribution grid in case of procurement and activation of LV flexibility to provide balancing services. The outcome of these algorithms is the formulation of grid constraints. WP3 will design different concepts (‘traffic light’) to integrate the calculated grid constraints in novel models for coordination between system operators and other energy actors.

WP 4 - Implications for Belgian System

WP4 analyses the role and impact of the developed innovations from WP2 and WP3 for the Belgian system with respect to steady-state system stability (balancing) and system security (adequacy) in case of a large deployment of local flexibility (considering both individual and collective concepts). A multi-stakeholder approach will be adopted, assessing both the view of regulated and commercial actors. WP4 will provide an integrated, consumer-centric Belgian framework for LV flexibility investment, procurement and activation, taking into account the interconnected decision-making processes of the different system actors.  In the context of balancing, we focus on how bounded rationality and preferences affects the day-to-day provision of demand response/flexibility from individual users and collective user groups. Next, WP4 will consider how the heterogeneous consumer models developed in WP2 will affect the adequacy assessments, used to support the security of supply assessment at the Belgian level. In the adequacy assessment, our focus is on how bounded rationality and preferences affects investments in distributed assets, changing the net-load shape to be covered by the system, as well as the willingness of LV users to provide emergency demand response services. Throughout both analyses, we account for the system constraints and the outcomes of WP3.

WP 5 - Dissemination & Results

WP5 is responsible for the recommendations of ALEXANDER and the interaction and communication with external stakeholders. This work package ensures that the research outcomes are relevant through stakeholder interactions and that the research outcomes are translated into a set of clear conclusions and recommendations that should support policy makers to define a future-proof Belgian energy system.  This work package is responsible for the organisation of the Advisory Board of ALEXANDER. The Advisory Board consists of representatives from relevant regulatory bodies, system operators, academic organisations, policy makers and industrial partners.  Additionally, WP5 also organizes the DSO sounding board, which consists of the four Belgian DSOs (Fluvius, Sibelga, ORES and RESA, in which the project partners will present and discuss project results and will contribute to a Belgian DSO vision for the facilitation of LV flexibility for system balancing purposes.