Purpose and Need for Autonomous Energy Systems (Text Version)

This is the text version of the video Purpose and Need for Autonomous Energy Systems.

This video explains what autonomous energy systems are and the benefits they provide utilities, businesses, and communities.

[Music plays]

[Images of energy storage facilities and renewable energy]

[Narrator speaks]

Energy systems are evolving to a place of automation and intelligence.

How we create, store, and consume electricity is undergoing major technological changes to meet sustainability goals. 

Distributed generation such as solar, wind, and battery systems have grown rapidly, while electric vehicles and smart buildings add to the complexity, requiring real-time coordination to manage and expanding and diverse energy system.

As power systems grow with the addition of devices, electricity demand increases, and advanced approaches to manage an increasingly diverse and complex energy system is needed. 

This transformation is causing utilities and operators to consider a decentralized approach to delivering power to their customers.

To support this evolution and meet the energy challenges of tomorrow, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory has embarked on the development of autonomous energy systems, also known as AES.

AES deconstructs central energy management into adaptive and modular controls and communications.

It introduces automation across the grid to seamlessly integrate and manage diverse energy resources.

These methods can scale to millions of distributed generation points and potentially billions of devices.

[Animation shows solar panels, wind turbines, batteries, electric vehicle charging stations, homes, and office buildings feeding power into a transmission tower and feeding data into the cloud]

Here is why AES is important to utilities, companies, and communities:

AES autonomously manages supply and demand of electricity according to sub-second conditions.

As a network of building blocks, sections of the grid can adapt to disturbances and failures in both cyber and physical networks and can organize as virtual power plants for greater grid flexibility.

Using generation, transmission, distribution, and end use energy data, AES algorithms can be customized to meet various system objectives.

And streamlined operations with AES can deliver electricity more efficiently and reliably, lowering the price of power for consumers.

AES technology also keeps communities in mind.

Algorithms can be configured with input from neighborhood associations, making energy more affordable, sustainable, and resilient.

With AES, the community decides how local energy resources are used and best serve their needs.

Autonomous energy systems: Responding to the urgent energy challenges of today and providing the reliability and sustainability solutions of tomorrow.

[Text on screen: Basalt Vista, Colorado, community pilots autonomous energy management, developed by NREL]

Visit nrel.gov/AES to learn how your community can benefit.

[Animated NREL logo]

[Music stops, narration ends.]