NAVIGATION - Planning and EV Charging Operation Utilising Low-Carbon Generators

SGN is a leading UK gas network operator that invests in innovative projects designed to accelerate the energy transition and move towards a 100% renewable hydrogen gas network. The NAVIGATION Project was set up to explore the benefits of novel technologies in positioning the gas network as an alternative power provider for an ultra-rapid Electric Vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure.

The UK's Zero Emission Transport strategy commits the UK to stopping the sale of new diesel and petrol cars and vans from 2030, and that all new cars and vans must be fully zero emission at the tailpipe from 2035. Key to achieving this goal is making EVs a more viable option for consumers with a charging infrastructure that will support adoption and reduce range anxiety.  Working with SGN and two other novel technology providers, SMPnet proposed an approach to build network resilience in anticipation of increased EV uptake and of a growth of hydrogen use in carbon-free energy supply.

What we did

Our team identified ways that Omega could supervise, optimise and control energy assets to help electricity and gas networks to cooperate towards sharing existing flexibility, unlocking vital flexibility of EV assets.  SMPnet conducted several activities to support the project aims:

• Identification of appropriate control strategies
• Conceptualisation of digital infrastructure for flexibility services realisation
• Simulation of control strategies to realise flexibility services
• Definition of requirements and best practices for wide-scale deployment (e.g., network modelling)

What we showed

SMPnet showcased how Omega technology optimally controls the involved assets and:

• Enables gas and electricity network coupling, to share existing flexibility and maximise EV integration.
• Unlock faster flexibility provision from project participant IPG’s Flameless Generators, potentially enabling their participation in primary response markets.
• Supports the mitigation of EV range anxiety and charging time barriers that hinder EV adoption.

In addition, SMPnet also developed a set of predictive tools to provide robust forecasting of upcoming EV charging profiles (arrival/departure times) to support flexibility services provision and identified appropriate control strategies to realise flexibility services.

Summary

The NAVIGATION Project set out to introduce a direct alternative to capital-intensive network reinforcements; divert costs from consumers and create the technical framework for revenue streams to prosumers, and; scale EV uptake, furthering the UK's Net Zero agenda.  The project findings provide a blueprint for coupling the evolving gas network with the electricity network to alleviate the grid constraint and balancing issues around wider ultra-rapid EV charging. The utilisation of Omega in this project shows the ability to optimally control the involved assets (including EVs), to enable coupling of the gas and electricity networks to share existing flexibility and unlock hidden flexibility by EVs.  In combination with other partners involved in the project we have demonstrated our technology will significantly support the mitigation of EV range anxiety and charging time barriers that hinder EV adoption.

*This project was undertaken within Ofgem 2021: zero emission transport – Discovery Phase. The project was led by SGN and three selected participant companies, SMPnet, Farad.ai and IPG.