Tarmac partners with Open Energi

Tarmac has partnered with Open Energi, the UK’s leading Demand Side Response company, to harness flexible energy demand from their equipment that Open Energi will then aggregate to unlock new capacity on the National Grid.

Throughout the year the grid experiences a series of spikes in power demand as millions across Britain put the kettle on during the ad-breaks of popular television programmes. Responding to such spikes rapidly is critical to ensure the grid is balanced and the lights don’t go out. Integrating more renewables on to the network would mean that more fluctuations in generation are likely to occur.

One solution is the use of Demand Side Response technology, which the National Grid has identified as a key solution for future-proofing the UK’s electricity grid. Plans were announced earlier this year to invest up to £400 million to meet between 30 – 50% of the grid’s balancing requirements from the demand side by 2020.

The technology allows consumers to change how and when they use electricity to free up capacity for the overall grid. It does this by freeing up electricity that can be used to balance spikes in demand, avoiding the need to rely on additional power-stations that would normally be used to support peak times. Open Energi Dynamic Demand DSR technology is empowering energy users to take an active role in transforming how the UK energy system works, as its system automatically adjusts power consumption, thereby helping to manage fluctuations in electricity supply and demand. OpenEnergi is working with Tarmac to install Dynamic Demand on over 200 bitumen tanks at its 70 asphalt plants across the UK. The introduction of this new technology should help to build a more responsive system that supports renewables and the wider UK transition to a zero carbon economy.

Ged Holmes, Commercial Director, Open Energi said: “DSR is playing an important role in building a smarter, more sustainable electricity network. The collaboration with Tarmac is a significant milestone for Open Energi, supporting National Grid to balance supply and demand on the grid.”

Rollout began at the start of 2015 and has now been installed at over 50 Tarmac sites. The final 20 are expected to be completed early in 2016.

Dr Martyn Kenny, Sustainability Director at Tarmac said: “Our construction solutions are used across the UK to create the infrastructure around us. As such, we recognise the importance of contributing to its overall sustainability, by ensuring we optimise the whole life performance and by growing and managing our business in a sustainable way. DSR technology helps us do just that. By managing our energy demand more smartly we are supporting the delivery of the UK’s carbon reduction targets.”

Adapted from press release by Rebecca Bowden

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/europe-cis/18122015/tarmac-partners-with-open-energi-214/