Cutting Sark?
BBC reported yesterday that the island of Sark would lose its electricity supply at the end of November, because Sark Electricity Limited (SEL) says that it can’t afford to generate power at the 52p/kWh price cap that the local regulator has imposed. The generation is diesel-powered, and shipping diesel to the island is costly. There’s […]
Swanbarton’s in hot water
Swanbarton is developing technology to deliver energy network balancing services from domestic hot water systems.
Energy trading, as if people mattered
Swanbarton’s radical re-imagining of electricity trading has become reality on the Hebridean island of Iona. Thirty homes are taking part in a trial led by Scene Connect and Swanbarton. Using real time consumption data gathered by Scene Connect, Swanbarton’s Real Time Trading Platform provides each home with a smart agent to negotiate electricity prices on its behalf, in real time.
Swanbarton celebrates fifteen years in energy storage
Back in the summer of 2003, only a few people were interested in energy storage. Batteries were expensive, pumped hydro took a long time to build, the business case for flywheels was hard to find and innovation in the energy sector was all about small-scale on shore and off shore wind. Solar PV was a […]
Keeping Africa safe when the lights go out
Energy storage experts Swanbarton are leading a consortium to solve one of the developing world’s most distressing energy problems. Swanbarton is working with the University of Bath, the University of Botswana’s Clean Energy Research Centre and battery supplier Yuasa. The project has been awarded co-funding by the UK’s innovation agency, Innovate UK, and by the […]
The capacity market auctions, Winter 2017 / 2018: certainty or uncertainty in the storage sector?
There’s a rigid timetable for the Capacity Market Auctions in GB. Probably, the timetable is the most certain of all the variables in the auction process. Last Friday, ( 1 December 2017), the EMR delivery body published details of the projects and their status in the prequalification phase of the auction. Our interest is in […]
Time of use tariffs bring domestic storage one step closer to economic viability
Thus far, domestic energy storage has been a cool thing with which to impress your mates, and lately it’s been about the cheapest way to get anything with a Tesla logo on it. But it’s been a long way from being the sort of economic no-brainer that’ll secure an enduring mass market. This week brings […]
The next monster child of the Welfare State?
At the Community Energy Markets Conference the other week, several delegates picked up on Professor Furong Li’s remark that future energy markets are likely to offer tiered prices reflecting tiers of quality of supply. For example, a price for locally generated electricity may be low, but the reliability of generation will be low as well. […]
New Market Models for Community Energy Conference
Developing the Technology and Market Models for Local Energy Markets Thursday 29th January 2015 Community and Localised energy supply can benefit consumers, small generators and network operators. However, in order to implement this new, efficient energy supply, communities need a new market model. This conference discussed the role, technology and development of local energy markets. […]
Community energy ice cream
Community energy, just like ice cream, seems nice to everyone, but it comes in a number of flavours. Some people have their own favourite flavour, but some just don’t seem to care. The Rt Hon Ed Davey recently blessed the ice cream counter that is community energy, declaring that he was a big fan, and […]