This solution is a method of coordinating consumption in electricity grids that aims to smooth the aggregate consumption curve of the power grid, reducing the difference between its peaks and valleys.

This coordination is done in a distributed and self-organized way without explicit communication between electrical installations, neither a control center nor a centralized agent, only using the grid aggregate consumption information or similar. This way, electrical installations where CoGrid is implemented will have their demand planned and regulated to increase its energy efficiency.

“CoGrid smooths the aggregate consumption curve  of the power grid reducing the difference between its peaks and valleys”

• Electricity market

• Electricity demand is growing again after several years of contraction. This reflects a better performance of the Spanish economy and could help to relieve the power system accounts.
• The increasing complexity and size of the electrical system brings a number of problems making essential the improvement of electricity demand management to be efficient and sustainable. CoGrid manage the electricity demand in smart grids with very low requirements in communications.
• The current levels of interconnection with Europe are only 4% of the installed power, far from the 10% target set by the EU.

“CoGrid allows the customers consumption coordination and having a better understanding of their behavior, providing a safer access to the wholesale market when energy prices are lower”

• Electric power demand is estimated to increase at an average annual rate of 2.4% until 2020, evolution above the expected for the set of energies to  the end user  and GDP [Spanish Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Commerce]
• Spain has about 28 million electricity supply points, 95% of them individuals, with a power of less than 15 kW, representing 35% of total electricity consumption. More than 27 million domestic meters have to be changed before 2018 according to regulations [El País Technology]
• Energy Manager clients with a great number of electrical installations
• Retail electric companies: they can coordinate their customers consumption and have a better understanding of their behavior, providing a safer access to the wholesale market when energy prices are lower.
• Distributed generation companies: companies manufacturing or installing renewable energy systems for managing its customers charges.

• Reduces the electrical infrastructure oversizing and optimizes the use of local resources. According to estimates, with a penetration of 10% in the electrical system, annual average reductions of 10% of the difference between peak and valley can be reached.
• It allows a distributed control with greater robustness and reliability than centralized control. It also has low communication infrastructure requirements for network management, and increases security and helps ensure data privacy.
• It is a self-organized way of managing consumption.
• The consumption coordination of all the retail electric company customers provides a more stable and easier to predict situation for the subsequent purchases.
• It is a completely and easily scalable solution.