Grid-interactive UPS and Data Centre potential to provide Fast Frequency Response and role in a low carbon energy system
Paananen, Janne (2022)
2022
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2022060816628
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2022060816628
Tiivistelmä
Digitalisation is driving to build more and bigger data centres to provide digital services for the society. The energy consumption of these digital factories is growing and significant in comparison to other sectors while societies are facing challenges with energy transition to battle the global warming. Data centres, in other hand, use modern power infrastructure that could be leveraged to support energy transition and wider use of renewable energy sources.
Purpose of this thesis was to provide basic information about electrical system balancing, grid‐interactive UPS in a data centre, and to assess the potential of data centres to provide Fast Frequency Response (FFR) to mitigate low inertia resulting from higher penetration of non‐synchronous renewable energy sources in selected synchronous areas.
To answer the main research question about data centre’s potential to provide FFR in relation to market volumes purchased by transmission system operators (TSO) from ancillary services markets, data centre capacities and UPS content were compared to FFR market volumes.
Results are proving that data centres could have a significant role in providing fast response and flexibility for the future electrical system. Some data centres are already providing frequency regulation with their UPS assets, and there seems to acceptance for the proposed solutions in the data centre market. Also, the suitability of UPS technology for frequency regulation has been proven in earlier pilots.
Leveraging data centre capabilities and existing assets for grid support enables higher penetration of renewables, replaces spinning fossil‐based reserves from the system, reduces need to build dedicated reserves and reduces the cost of system balancing, carbon emission and embodied carbon in the system. Overall, the socioeconomical benefits of grid‐interactive UPS and data centres are obvious and should be
taken into consideration when determining future policies.
Purpose of this thesis was to provide basic information about electrical system balancing, grid‐interactive UPS in a data centre, and to assess the potential of data centres to provide Fast Frequency Response (FFR) to mitigate low inertia resulting from higher penetration of non‐synchronous renewable energy sources in selected synchronous areas.
To answer the main research question about data centre’s potential to provide FFR in relation to market volumes purchased by transmission system operators (TSO) from ancillary services markets, data centre capacities and UPS content were compared to FFR market volumes.
Results are proving that data centres could have a significant role in providing fast response and flexibility for the future electrical system. Some data centres are already providing frequency regulation with their UPS assets, and there seems to acceptance for the proposed solutions in the data centre market. Also, the suitability of UPS technology for frequency regulation has been proven in earlier pilots.
Leveraging data centre capabilities and existing assets for grid support enables higher penetration of renewables, replaces spinning fossil‐based reserves from the system, reduces need to build dedicated reserves and reduces the cost of system balancing, carbon emission and embodied carbon in the system. Overall, the socioeconomical benefits of grid‐interactive UPS and data centres are obvious and should be
taken into consideration when determining future policies.