Water & Wastewater Treatment Magazine
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10 | JANUARY 2018 | WWT | www.wwtonline.co.uk Water companies and DSR: a flexible future W ater and wastewater companies are some of the largest consumers of energy in the UK, and with Ofwat increasing the pressure on firms to deliver more for customers with less, it is little wonder that water companies are keen to investigate demand-side response (DSR) as an additional revenue stream. DSR – which sees large energy users amend their consumption or switch to their own generation in response to real- time demand - is about being flexible and The Talk: DSR round table intelligent with energy use, helping the grid strike the right balance and receiving payment in return. As a large consumer of energy with a great deal of its operational requirements not being time sensitive, the water sector is a particularly suitable contender for DSR technology. Representatives from water companies across the UK gathered to discuss the topic at WWT's roundtable in London on November 23, which was held in association with Centrica Business Solutions. The attractiveness of demand-side response as an additional income stream for water companies is clear, but utilities need to overcome practical and cultural challenges before realising its potential By Katey Pigden PARTICIPANTS Mike Woolgar, Water Strategy Director – Water, Energy & Industry, WSP (Chair) Kirsten Abbott, DSR Lead, Southern Water Robert Barker, Business Development Manager, Centrica Matthew Burton, Energy Advisor / EICA Supervisor, South West Water Steven Clarke, Global Product Development – Demand Side Response, Centrica Matthew Crowhurst, Programme Manager, Wessex Water Darren Hewerdine, MEI Chartered Energy Manager Edward Knox, Energy Supply & Demand Specialist, Anglian Water Julie McKinney, Energy Strategy, Policy and Regulation Specialist, Scottish Water David Rose, Energy & Carbon Manager, South West Water Bob Stear, Head of Innovation, Severn Trent Rob Wild, Demand Side Response Manager, Severn Trent While some companies have been embracing DSR for quite some time, others had only "dabbled" in it and some were still exploring options. As well as the financial incentives, companies agreed that the benefits of DSR included boosting resilience – for their own operations and for the overall resilience of the grid – and helping to sharpen the focus on energy use data throughout their businesses. But although companies recognise there are opportunities associated with DSR, they are also aware it can present several challenges for them. Third-party aggregators have been the route several of the water companies have decided to take, especially for Firm Frequency Response (FFR) which, it was noted, is most suited to wastewater sites. The advancement of technology in this area means that water companies no longer have to manually turn off or down an asset, as equipment such as pumps or blowers are able to respond automatically. Some companies admitted they "didn't know much" about the process around 18 months ago and despite there being a "lot of enthusiasm" surrounding the concept, people have needed reassurance and to "feel comfortable" as it involves operational data. Some participants said they had been selective with the sites they have introduced DSR at, typically concentrating on larger sites, to help the organisation learn about the process and make the highest proportionate gain. Another popular scheme was the short-term operating reserve (STOR) where water companies offer an energy turndown or a switch to self-generation, in return for a price set through the capacity market. However participants mentioned two specific concerns about the scheme – first, that emissions regulations would soon mean switching to diesel generation would no longer be an option; and second, the onerous metering requirements involved. One company won a capacity market contract with National Grid, only later to struggle with the metering requirements and it ended up transferring to an aggregator. Metering requirements also caused issues for a different water company, before it managed to complete the required upgrade in the nick of time. Other challenges discussed included IN ASSOCIATION WITH