MOL, BELGIUM – November 16th 2009
VITO (Flemish institute for technological research) today announced that it has reached an agreement with Group Machiels to set up a Virtual Power Plant. In a first stage, a demand response audit will be executed to identify the cluster of electricity producers and consumers with the highest economical value to set up this Virtual Power Plant. In a next phase the PowerMatcher® will actively manage demand and supply of electricity in the selected cluster. Parties intend to have this Virtual Power Plant in operation during the course of 2010.
“We are pleased to be chosen by Group Machiels to set up what we believe to be the first Virtual Power Plant in Belgium,s" said Gerrit Jan Schaeffer, Director Energy Group at VITO. "The introduction of distributed energy resources (DER) in todays electricity grid calls for a decentralised control mechanism to match electricity supply and demand. The PowerMatcher® does this job. We look forward to work with Group Machiels to set up this Virtual Power Plant and introduce the PowerMatcher® in the market."
“For Group Machiels, this project emphasises our role as a pioneer in renewable energy production and sustainable entrepreneurship,” says Patrick Laevers, Board Member and Director. “The PowerMatcher® opens a window of opportunities for integrated power systems with a substantial share of DER across the world. The positive impact on the environment contributes to our commitment for sustainable entrepreneurship.”
ABOUT Power Matcher®
PowerMatcher® technology is a distributed energy systems architecture and communication protocol, which facilitates implementation of standardised, scalable Smart Grids, that can include both conventional and renewable energy sources. Through intelligent clustering, numerous small electricity producing or consuming devices operate as a single highly-flexible generating unit, creating a significant degree of added-value in electricity markets. PowerMatcher® Technology optimizes the potential for aggregated individual electricity producing and consuming devices to adjust their operation in order to increase the overall match between electricity production and consumption. Current PowerMatcher® technology is the product of an intensive collaboration between VITO and ECN (Energy research Centre of the Netherlands), which pioneered this technology.
For more information about the PowerMatcher, please visit: www.powermatcher.net (new window)
ABOUT GROUP MACHIELS
Group Machiels ‘Closing the Circle’
A sustainability story
Group Machiels closes the circle and hence opens extra perspectives for sustainable entrepreneurship. A boon for both ecology and the economy.
Group Machiels has already distinguished itself as a pioneer in sustainability for a number of years. The know-how and great internal dynamism at the company constantly result in innovative techniques for environmental protection, recycling and valorisation. This is know-how the group spreads across the whole world from its home in Limburg.
A Limburg story
Group Machiels is firmly anchored in Limburg. Here the group was founded originally as a contracting company now more than half a century ago and this is where the organisation has developed into its current form, being led by Louis Machiels. It is a group who seamlessly combines the internal family atmosphere with great professionalism, flexibility, dynamism and a desire to expand.
For more info about Group Machiels, please visit: www.groupmachiels.com (new window)
ABOUT ECN
The PowerMatcher Technology was developed by the Energy Research Centre of the Netherlands (ECN). This technology is the result of the R&D of ECN’s Intelligent Energy Grids Program. Approximately 15 specialists have accumulated the knowledge required for the transition to reliable, sustainable and cost-effective energy grids. ECN possesses a broad interdisciplinary expertise, including ICT knowledge and economic modeling, in combination with theoretical and practical knowledge on energy regulation techniques and energy markets
ABOUT VITO
VITO is a leading research institute focusing on intelligent energy systems for Smart Grids. This includes all systems for supply and demand which are made suitable for a Smart Grid. VITO has expertise in these individual technologies, and, moreover, is able to combine these components in their own state of the art Smart Grid testing facilities. In this way expertise is being gathered, which is unique in Flanders and cutting edge in Europe, and is necessary for the technical challenges of the future.
