Can flexible use create sufficient capacity in the energy system?

Picture a crowded motorway, at quarter past four on a Friday afternoon when everyone is heading home from work. The traffic is essentially at a standstill, and the capacity, the road space, is far from adequate for everyone who would like to get home. We can choose between two actions to remedy the problem: increased capacity or efforts to get some motorists to travel at different times.

A similar scenario for Sweden’s energy system is now being discussed. The demand for electricity will increase and the infrastructure will be expanded, but an important part of the solution could also be more flexible electricity use.

– “Flexible electricity use means that consumers and industry adapt their electricity use to the available supply,” says Inger-Lise Svensson, a unit manager at RISE.

A change in behaviour among both consumers and industry

In the case of a consumer, this could mean not using the washing machine, dishwasher, oven and car charger as soon as they get home from work, but instead doing the laundry and charging the car during the night when there is less demand. The same type of behaviour, but with an even greater system impact, applies to industry. And, according to the Swedish government, this more flexible electricity use is imperative if we are to achieve the goals of the electrification strategy.

– “Flexible use is important for several reasons,” says Stefan Pettersson.

First, there is the cost of capacity.

“The power grid must be sized to handle the very highest load, the peak, even if such demand is only seen during one cold week in January. The rest of the year you’re not even close to this, so if we can spread demand to make it more constant, we avoid having to pay for the thicker cables and more sizeable components that the peak requires,” says Stefan Pettersson.

Second, not only will future consumption need to be more flexible, but also future production will be more variable.

– “When the sun is shining and the wind is blowing, we’ll produce more, and that’s when you want to see consumption. Production and consumption in balance is the best outcome, otherwise we need to find ways to store a great deal of energy or, in the worst case, simply waste it,” says Inger-Lise Svensson.

Incentives for flexibility

As yet, there is no definitive answer as to how to achieve this flexibility. What is clear is that it is a matter of understanding what motivates people. Whether we are influenced by financial incentives, and if so how large they need to be, or whether a more altruistic outlook can get us to reschedule our consumption.

– “So far, we don’t have the answers, but here at RISE, it’s a major research field,” says Stefan Pettersson.

Naturally, the same applies to industry’s opportunities and motivation to act flexibly.

– “There are possible solutions, but we don’t yet know enough about the incentive aspects. What sacrifices are we willing to make to not be able to use electricity the way we’re used to?” Inger-Lise Svensson asks.

New technical solutions

Clearly, new technical solutions may be necessary to help both industry and consumers to determine when it is best to use electricity.

– “We’re facing a brand-new type of market in which different stakeholders can offer these types of products and services,” says Inger-Lise Svensson.

Accordingly, RISE is conducting intensive research to better understand the challenges, possible incentives and economic aspects.

– “We can and want to help all stakeholders in the chain to find the optimal structure for and approach to this flexibility,” says Stefan Pettersson.