10 reasons to participate in Demand Response programs

There are plenty of good reasons why companies should consider taking part in demand response programs and plenty more why they should choose Enel X

Electricity grids by their nature have to balance supply and demand in real time to avoid damage and power outages. They must maintain a constant frequency — typically 50 hertz — which can be thrown off balance if there is a sudden mismatch between supply and demand.

Demand Response programs pay companies that agree to reduce the amount of energy they draw from the grid in response to signals from the network operator. For the utility, they are a clean, cost-effective alternative to installing new power plants or bringing capacity held in reserve back online in order to restore the grid’s energy balance.

Flexibility Solutions

Transforming energy from a cost into an opportunity

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The benefits of Demand Response

The benefits of Demand Response can be summed in the following facts:

Participants can earn money by monetizing flexible energy use
Obtain lower energy costs by curtailing energy usage at peak times when energy is more expensive
Increase visibility on energy use, helping reduce consumption
Protect operations from any sudden disruptions. Demand response participants are notified of grid instability in advance, enabling them to prepare proactively against potential outages

Address compliance issues
Manage market exposure
Meet renewable energy goals
Leads to lower overall prices for energy in the long term
Contribute to a more reliable electricity grid
Payments can be reinvested into better energy management tools

Demand Response energy solutions monetize flexibility

Business Solutions

Supporting companies in improving their energy performance and achieving Net Zero goals

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Flexibility is the watchword in the new world of renewable energy sources and decarbonization of the global economy, and Demand Response energy is a key element in enabling the transition to a greener future. While electrical power is volatile because it cannot be stored, the amount generated also has to match demand. The increasing importance of renewables in the energy mix has boosted the variability of supply, an issue that will become increasingly pronounced. Many countries aim to obtain a certain amount of their power from 100% renewable sources. Germany, for example, is aiming to get at least 80% of power from renewables by 2050, while Sweden and Spain are targeting 100% by 2040 and 2050, respectively.

Flexibility, in this new scenario, has acquired a monetary value, and Demand Response programs offer companies an opportunity to monetize their ability to vary consumption of electricity from the grid when asked to do so. Demand Response programs offer companies substantial payments for being on call to reduce non-essential energy use when the grid needs support. At Enel X, as part of the Enel Group, we are able to put more than 50 years of experience in the energy markets to use to tailor Demand Response programs that ensure our 6,000 client companies worldwide receive maximum remuneration for minimum disruption.

Three Demand Response solutions

Demand Response business programs offered by Enel X rely on solutions that fall into three categories. Savings and revenue benefits generated by one group can be fed into the next to amplify the gains through improved energy management software, audits, assessments, upgrades to equipment leading to lower costs and better performance.

Demand Response programs that compensate companies for agreeing to modulate their consumption when requested by the grid operator. Enel X offers the opportunity to participate in over 50 programs world wide.
Generation and optimization programs designed for commercial and industrial clients that own an energy generation asset.
Generator upgrades that are custom-designed by Enel X for businesses that already own a backup generator. Enel X can finance the backup generator upgrade to help the business achieve maximum flexibility and benefits of a energy Demand Response solutions program.

Maximizing energy assets

Enel X is essentially a platform company, a state-of-the-art digital platform that connects the national grid’s needs with the flexible energy needs of our clients. The platform serves as a big data collector, which in turn allows big data analysis, predictive analytics and artificial intelligence applications. The result is a virtual power plant that allows our clients to maximize the value of their energy assets and to monetize their flexibility in using them. We look at a client’s entire energy portfolio with a view to ensuring they get the very best price for the power they generate or forgo, while reducing overall costs and risk. Our aim is for our partners to make the most of market and regulatory trends while achieving targets for sustainability.

Sustainability

Leading the way to climate-proof technological transformation

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Our Demand Response program

Our DR Programs

Demand Response solution means customers are paid for power consumption flexibility

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Customer service as the key to success is the philosophy behind our state-of-the-art Network Operations Center (NOC), which we set up in 2011 as our Demand Response command hub. The NOC operates the world’s biggest portfolio of Demand Response assets, managing more than 7 GW in 16 countries worldwide, and taking part in more than 50 programs around the world, all with differing regulatory backgrounds and business dynamics. The NOC operates around the clock, seven days a week, all year round. The NOC operates around the clock, seven days a week, all year round. In its Leaderboard report in 2020, the top energy consulting firm Guidehouse Insights ranked us among the leaders in “staying power”, a measure of our ability to withstand weak or volatile markets.

That resiliency gives us the firepower to finance and implement any upgrades to their generators that customers might require in order to meet regulatory requirements for participation in Demand Response programs — at no upfront cost to the customer. We can also finance and implement other types of generator upgrades that make a plant viable, such as connecting more load or installing a transfer device.

Demand Response programs and demand management systems in general are a key pillar of Enel X’s “Energy as a Service” (EaaS) business model. EaaS lets customers optimize their energy budgets through partnerships with experts, providing solutions that can help businesses gain control over their expenses for power.

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