Numbat & Tennet - grid-friendly charging infrastructure

The transmission system operator TenneT and the company Numbat are starting a pilot project to reduce congestion in the electricity grid and stabilize the transmission grid. The aim of the project is to set up an end-to-end process that will enable TenneT to access the flexibility potential of the Numbat systems.

TenneT and Numbat have approved a plan to improve the electricity grid’s stability and reduce bottlenecks. The goal is to create an end-to-end process that allows TenneT to utilize Numbat’s flexibility potential. The pilot project will adjust the charging and feed-in behavior of Numbat systems to decrease bottlenecks in the grid. The charging columns will be used in TenneT’s congestion management, enabling them to manage electricity consumption and feed energy back into the grid. The Numbat systems are optimized to ensure that customers charging their vehicles do not experience any loss of comfort.

The reason for this cooperation is to address the increasing number of bottlenecks in the German electricity grid caused by transporting electricity from the windy north to the south and west. To counteract grid bottlenecks, conventional power plants such as gas-fired power plants have been used in the past. However, alternative solutions are needed to achieve decarbonization targets and to manage energy prices.

Numbat’s founder, Martin Schall, says that “geographically distributed systems like our Numbats with their battery storage can help to balance these bottlenecks.” Numbat systems are connected to the Equigy – Crowd Balancing Platform, which allows them to participate in various flexibility markets across Europe.

TenneT’s COO, Tim Meyerjürgens, explains that “TenneT is researching how small-scale flexibilities like battery-electric vehicles and their charging infrastructure can complement grid expansion and relieve the transmission grid. The project with Numbat aims to identify and specify necessary adjustments to existing statutory regulations to make the potential of this flexibility usable.”