System for responding to frequency fluctuations in an energy grid

A method of controlling a pool of assets connected to an electricity distribution grid operating at a predetermined grid frequency, the assets comprising assets arranged to supply electrical energy to and/or consume electrical energy from the grid, wherein at least some of the assets are configurable to adjust energy flow to or from the grid to counteract grid frequency fluctuations, the method comprising:

• applying an aggregation algorithm to the assets in the pool to configure one or more first aggregate responses to fluctuations in the grid frequency, wherein an aggregate response comprises respective adjustments of energy flow between each of a selected group of assets and the grid, the adjustments arranged in combination to counteract a fluctuation in grid frequency;
• controlling assets in the pool in accordance with the configured first aggregate responses during a first time;
• detecting a divergence between first and second grid frequencies measured at different locations of the grid;
• and
• in response to detecting the divergence:
• segmenting the asset pool into a plurality of asset clusters in dependence on respective grid frequencies measured for respective assets of the pool;
• and
• for each asset cluster, applying the aggregation algorithm to assets within the cluster to configure one or more second aggregate responses involving only assets within the cluster;
• the method further comprising controlling assets in each asset cluster in accordance with the respective configured second aggregate responses during a second time.

A tangible computer-readable medium comprising software code adapted, when executed on one or more data processing devices, to perform a method of correcting a grid frequency imbalance in an electricity supply grid, comprising:

• configuring an aggregate response by a group of energy assets to fluctuations in the grid frequency, wherein the aggregate response comprises respective adjustments of energy flow between each of the group of assets and the grid, the adjustments arranged in combination to counteract a fluctuation in grid frequency;
• detecting a divergence between:
• a first grid frequency measured in a portion of the grid comprising a first asset of the group of assets;
• and
• a second grid frequency measured in a portion of the grid comprising a second asset of the group of assets;
• and
• in response to detecting the divergence, reconfiguring at least one of the first and second assets to alter the configured energy flow adjustment for that asset.

A control system comprising:

• at least one processor;
• at least first and second grid frequency sensors for sensing respective first and second transmission frequencies of electricity at different locations of an electricity distribution grid;
• a control interface for controlling an energy supplying or energy consuming asset connected to the electricity distribution grid;
• wherein the at least one processor is arranged to:
• control the asset to counteract fluctuations in grid frequency by altering energy flow between the asset and the gird;
• detect a divergence between a first grid frequency measurement received from the first frequency sensor and a second grid frequency measurement received from the second frequency sensor;
• and
• in response to detecting the divergence, altering or suspending control of the asset to counteract fluctuations in grid frequency.