Electricity Asset Management Plan 2019-2029
17 Vector Limited://
spent and towards an increasing number of lower voltage networks that will support customer technology adoption and enablement through integration with the network. We are also monitoring the use of hydrogen and fuel cells as potential new technology options our customers may adopt. There is a broad range of possible applications as it could be utilised for commercial vehicles or even for peak load management using our gas network. ENERGY STORAGE Advances in energy storage, in particular how much energy batteries can store, will mean that mass energy storage could soon become cheaper to purchase, build and manage. Like solar panels, lithium-ion storage batteries are becoming more common in homes and businesses. As the cost of solar and lithium-ion battery technology trends down, there will be a tipping point for mass market adoption. However, we don’t know when this will occur. This creates uncertainty when planning for investment in the network. At the industrial level, electrification linked with thermal storage, metal-air and battery alternatives like supercapacitors are emerging. This proliferation of energy storage options could also change the way power flows through electricity networks. If managed and integrated with the network, these storage options could lead to less demand for electricity from homes and businesses, which would result in less strain on the network, along with other economic and operational benefits. Such storage options would provide people with the capability to store excess energy generated from solar panels. ENERGY UTILISATION AND MANAGEMENT Energy utilisation and management technologies are also advancing. There is a growing array of electrical devices and equipment that are much more energy-efficient. LED lighting, heat pumps, refrigeration and energy efficient air-handling systems are reducing the energy needs of our factories, offices and homes. Internet and cloud-based software, which control and manage how energy is used and co-ordinated across different sites, is also helping create ‘smart’ buildings and infrastructure. As these smart technologies evolve, even smarter developments like machine learning and artificial intelligence, which are now at the early leading-edge stage, will allow these energy technologies to dynamically adapt and optimise. For Vector’s network, the potential of these technologies is huge. We are continuing to invest in them to understand how they can help us manage, control and utilise our network to meet Auckland’s growing demand for energy.
HARNESSING THE POWER OF EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES
Vector’s core focus is on ensuring our distribution network provides an affordable and high-quality service for Aucklanders, and is an enabler not a hindrance to the new energy future. While traditional network assets will form the backbone of the network for many decades to come, new network technologies are fast becoming an essential part of the mix. DISTRIBUTED RENEWABLE ENERGY GENERATION Foremost in this energy revolution is the emergence of technologies that can renew or generate their own electricity, such as solar panels. These technologies are trickling down from an industrial level (solar energy farms) to become directly available to people and businesses (solar panels installed in the home, for example). As technology innovation continues and prices drop, solar is becoming more available and affordable. Solar panels will have an increasing influence on our electrical system. Until now, the energy generation/retail model has been based on customers getting their power from a central location and then paying for this in a standardised way. Solar panels are changing this. They will let households and businesses become energy ‘prosumers’ (producer / consumers), and, through channels such as peer-to-peer trading, allow solar energy to be shared within ‘energy communities’ on their own terms. These solar households will be able to generate their own clean electricity on-site and convert any surplus into revenue by trading locally. These changing power flows undermine the unidirectional flow that our current networks were designed for. As a result, we anticipate investment in electricity distribution networks will shift away from where it has traditionally been
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