German retailer Aldi Süd and energy supplier EnBW have teamed up to test how self-generated solar energy can be stored and effectively used on site.
The project will see the retailer collaborate with storage provider Ads-Tec and solar experts from Pohlen Solar.
Test Phase
Currently, over 1,200 Aldi Süd stores are equipped with photovoltaic plants, which produce over 112 million kilowatt-hours of solar energy that is consumed locally.
Florian Kempf, head of energy management at Aldi Süd, said, “In the first test phase, the solar systems of three branches in the metropolitan area of Frankfurt am Main are being coupled with a battery storage unit. This creates a small virtual power station."
"Together with our partners, we have started this experiment to make electricity generation even more efficient. Our goal is to generate as much energy for self-consumption as possible.”
Evaluating Energy Flow
EnBW will be tasked with monitoring energy consumption and evaluating whether or not it is more favourable for Aldi Süd to directly consume the solar power, store it, or make it available to the energy market.
EnBW has developed an algorithm that helps determine how the self-generated electricity should be used.
Timo Sillober, head of sales and product management at EnBW, said, "The intelligent networking of decentralised power generation and the management of complex energy flows are key to the energy supply of tomorrow.”
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Aidan O’Sullivan. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
