Prosumer

Prosumer are the new players of the energy transition. The term, commonly used since the 2000s, refers to people who can both consume and produce electricity. The classic example is a household that produces green electricity with a photovoltaic (PV) power plant on the roof of its house. At sunny times enough electricity is produced to meet household’s needs and feed a surplus into the grid. When the sun goes down, the household gets electricity from the grid. Similarly, battery storage, stationary or in the electric vehicle, as well as combined heat and power (CHP) plants can feed electricity into the grid. The household will thus become an active participant in the energy market.

It is not just about producing electricity in a decentralized way, rather the prosumer can take responsibility in the energy system through grid-friendly behavior. With controllable loads he can offer flexibility by taking more electricity from the grid when there is a surplus and less when energy is in deficit, for instance when the local network is overloaded with demand. Household appliances and electric cars will be controlled to retrieve flexibility. Dynamic energy prices can motivate consumers to act market- and grid-assistive, contributing to system stability and security of supply. The prosumer becomes so to speak the Flexumer, a term coined in the SINTEG project C/sells in dialogue with politics.

For the participation of prosumers in the energy system – it involves a variety of decentralized assets as well as small amounts of energy in the distribution network – a smart energy system infrastructure is indispensable: smart metering systems, smart home devices or a network infrastructure for transparency in the distribution network help to bring supply and demand together.

We investigate and evaluate the role of prosumers and their importance for the energy system of today and tomorrow on behalf of various market participants.

 

Shaping the Energiewende...

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