LEONARDO

The daily energy flexibility requirement in Europe (EU) will increase by 133% between 2021 and 2030 and by up to 250% between 2030 and 2050. Given the current climate and energy crisis, the need for alternative flexibility resources with low marginal costs, such as demand-side flexibility (DSF), is more in the spotlight than ever. Despite being the third largest energy consumer in the EU, the industrial sector remains a largely untapped source of flexibility. Through the strategic implementation of industrial DSF (iDSF), EU energy systems could achieve substantial reductions of between 4.7% and 7.1% of peak load. This can not only contribute to grid stability and security of supply, but also position industries as active participants in shaping a sustainable energy future. However, current progress in the deployment of iDSF across the EU varies from low to non-existent due to numerous economic, regulatory, technological, organisational, behavioural, informational and competence barriers.

LEONARDO aims to support the aggregation of different energy management systems (EMS) with the goal of optimising the flexibility of collaborative demand from industries in close physical proximity. LEONARDO aims to overcome interoperability challenges, improve the functionality of energy management systems and analyse the value of its flexibility solutions in real environments. LEONARDO solutions will be analysed and supported in three (3) pilot sites (Italy, Austria, Bulgaria/Greece), setting a milestone for the future use of aggregated industrial environmental management systems for grid flexibility services. Finally, the Industrial Flexibility Knowledge Hub will serve as a one-stop shop for a wide range of information and resources, including the FlexifyMyIndustry assistant, a cutting-edge approach to assessing the flexibility potential of industries and for the initial validation of their accessibility to various flexibility markets, through a standardised metric.

THE ROLE OF FBK

FBK coordinates the project and is leader of WP5 ‘LEONARDO Integration, Testing, Performance Evaluation and TSO – DSO Coordination Schemes,’ which involves the preparation of the following activities at the pilot sites.