Low carbon technology

There is an increasing focus on decarbonising energy usage where possible and to achieve this customers are using Low Carbon Technologies (LCT). Battery-powered cars are replacing conventional cars. Heat pumps that extract heat from the air or earth and transfer it to domestic properties are replacing gas central heating. Electricity can be supplied by roof-mounted solar panels and stored in batteries for use when solar energy isn’t available. All these devices are helping to reduce reliance on carbon-based sources of energy and they are becoming more popular as the cost of the technology falls. But, because they now get their energy from electrical sources rather than the fossil fuel-based sources that they previously did, they increase the current that flows within the distribution network. This also means that they connect many more devices to the wider distribution network, which can cause distortion to the supply.

Load profiles on distribution networks have been consistent for a long time. Peak utilisation traditionally occurs during the early evening and is higher in the winter than it is in the summer. The use of LCTs is changing everything that is understood about a typical load profile. Summer daytime power flows that were traditionally the lowest are much higher where solar panel installation is prolific. The early evening peak is significantly higher where customers return from work and charge their electric vehicle overnight. Heat pumps also add to network load at times that domestic heating is required.

We continuously assess how load profiles are changing and consider how to best manage the connection and usage of LCT devices. Peak loads will increase if unmitigated, although there are opportunities to spread the load throughout the day through sophisticated charging regimes. Domestic batteries may be used to flatten load profiles and smart meters may help to send signals to customers to encourage particular behaviours where it makes economic sense. If we don’t introduce these measures, we may need to make significant reinforcement to the lower voltage networks. Avoiding this reinforcement will help to ensure that customer's bills remain as low as possible while still enabling Low Carbon Technologies to continue connecting to the network. Although the focus will be to manage power flows within the rating of the network, the solution will have a direct impact on network losses.