Despite the well publicized withdrawal from the Paris climate change commitment by Donald Trump recently, most of the world agrees on the need to create a cleaner world, whether due to the concerns over energy security, air pollution or any of the myriad of issues bundled up in a greener climate.

The Carbon Trust has recently launched a new collaboration platform to help deliver such a world.  The project, known as the Energy Systems Innovation Platform (ESIP), will bring together energy companies such as Centrica, DONG Energy, SSE, Scottish Power and Statoil to work collectively on some of the challenges preventing a smooth transition to a low carbon energy system.

The group will initially tackle issues such as regulation, long-term business models to encourage suitable investment in renewables and a lack of transparency in the industry.  Each partner was chosen for the unique perspective they bring to the table.

“There is now general consensus that the UK energy markets needs to be revamped so we can embrace a flexible and more decentralised energy system.  However the fragmented nature of the energy market is driving fragmented decision making and many investments are led by technology not market needs.  There is an urgent need for an open forum where the wider industry can collaborate to solve common issues in order to capitalise on recent storage innovation. ESIP fills that gap,” the Carbon Trust say.

They hope that ESIP will provide the kind of systemic change that is nearly impossible for any one participant to achieve on their own, but that collectively can be done.

Effective storage

One of the key areas ESIP hope to tackle is around energy storage.  The Carbon Trust led a study last year that showed how the UK could save up to £2.4bn a year if energy storage solutions were better integrated into the energy grid.  With renewable energy sources generating over 50% of the country’s energy for the first time this year, the need for more effective storage solutions to reduce system costs is obvious.  It’s an outcome that can only be achieved through collective action though.

ESIP hope to develop a sustainable business model whereby storage allows significant cost reductions across the energy system.  It will initially explore use cases around energy storage with a focus on the integration of wind energy into the grid.

“ESIP’s focus on developing viable business models for storage use cases aligned with system benefits is a vital piece of the puzzle which has not been looked at yet. ESIP works in an evidence-based way to address market failures while simultaneously identifying commercial opportunities for industry. This can help to overcome the “chicken and egg” dilemma between market creation and industry deployment that often limits the uptake of promising new solutions,” they say.

Initial results from the project are expected by the end of the year, when the initial work into business models, regulatory barriers and possible solutions will be published.