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Success-Story Smart technologies for low carbon buildings

Smart technologies for low-carbon buildings

E.ON Innovation enables low-carbon buildings in the UK.

Key
Facts

  • Within the project the grid connection of new sustainable assets, such as solar photovoltaic (PV), heat pumps and electric vehicle (EV) chargers, is to be enabled.
  • An innovative energy management system ensures that network capacities are not exceeded.
  • The full-service package has been designed to meet the individual demands of new build developments while avoiding costly network infrastructure upgrades for developers.

The Challenge

The construction of new homes is growing rapidly, and low-carbon technologies are increasingly important. The Paris Climate Agreement as part of the energy transition is accompanied by new sustainable building regulations that require changes from the insulation of the building fabric to energy consumption and heating technologies.

Greater installation of low-carbon technologies such as heat pumps and EV charging stations is creating a significant increase in demand on energy networks. This is pushing grids to their capacity limits. Even rooftop PV installations pose a challenge, as the local grid does not always have sufficient capacity to absorb the energy generated. In order to avoid costly infrastructure upgrades payable by the developer, the innovative solutions enabling connections to distribution networks in new construction projects are needed.



low carbon technologies
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reduce project delaying network constraints
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avoid expensive grid expansion costs for the property developer

The Solution

In order to meet the increasing electricity demand and at the same time avoid costly infrastructure upgrades the E.ON Innovation team developed a trailblazing solution. It allows Distribution System Operators (DSOs) to host new sustainable technologies – such as PV panels, heat pumps and EV chargers – without need to upgrade the grid.

The solution employs an intelligent peak load management system: by managing on-site power consumption and generation, the system ensures that renewable energy is supplied to as many homeowners as possible. At the same time peak loads on the local distribution network are reduced, thus ensuring that the available capacity of the electrical substation is not exceeded.

Based on network capacity, regulations and location-specific planning conditions, the solution is adaptable to individual customer requirements.

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increase the amount of self-consumption of PV generated power
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monitor energy flow to effectively manage the local distribution network


include individual consultancy for a bespoke solution

The Result

With the solution provided by E.ON Innovation, increasing the efficient use of our existing power network infrastructure becomes viable. This is done through active monitoring of energy flows and intelligent control of devices to manage the peak load on the local distribution network.

In a pilot project with Cala Homes, Energy Assets and SP Energy Networks, 70 new homes implementing the new solution and thus meeting the sustainable building regulations are being built at Maidenhill, near Glasgow. Initially, the project is geared towards exporting electricity from solar photovoltaic systems. In the future, heat pumps shall also be controlled with this solution. Without the system provided by E.ON innovation circa £7,000 additional costs per home across the wider home development project (which consists of 800 homes in total) would have been required.

  • By uniting sustainability, consultancy, cost-savings and smart energy management we accelerate low-carbon building.

    Luis Hernandez, Head of Innovation, Energy Communities and Networks

  • We accompany our customers from start to finish, offering individual consultancy and a tailored solution.

    Denver Rumney, E.ON Group Innovation UK Lead

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