Electricity consumption is set to grow dramatically in India, especially for cooling purposes, as the population of the country grows, and more consumers deploy air conditioners and electric vehicles. Demand Response (DR) is a powerful alternative by which utilities can reduce stress on the grid during peak periods while providing customers economic and environmental benefits. DR programs aim to reduce or shift energy consumption from peak hours of the day to leaner demand periods by offering incentives to the consumers for their cooperation. Participating customers can exercise control over their consumption, and voluntarily choose to turn down non-essential loads to reduce total load at peak times thus optimizing their monthly electricity bills.
Additionally, energy generation is set to grow sharply as well; almost doubling by 2030, accompanied by a rise in the share of renewables to around 50% of the total generation mix. The intermittency of renewable generation creates new challenges for power system operators and market participants to manage price volatility and system reliability. To cater to this, a study by CEA suggests the need for battery storage to the tune of 27,000 MW and pumped storage of 20,000 MW. The sharp increase projected in renewable energy, distributed generation, energy storage and need for ancillary services creates opportunities for existing and new players in the power system. The collaboration between PTC and AutoGrid proposes to unlock such opportunities.
Commenting on the initiative, Dr. Rajib K Mishra, CMD PTC said, “Demand is seeing a sharp rise in India due overall economic growth and increasing HVAC loads driven by rising consumer incomes. As a result, the load is getting peakier. Demand Response is a powerful tool for peak load management for Discoms. Additionally, there is a strong technology need to enable higher integration of Renewable Energy into India’s grid without creating grid instability. We are looking forward to deploying AutoGrid‘ s AI-based energy management solution to support PTC’s mission of a carbon-free future.”
“We are delighted to collaborate with PTC India to bring pioneering solutions to their customer base by leveraging our best-in-class energy-AI platform, said Dr. Amit Narayan, CEO, AutoGrid. “With this collaboration, we aim to demonstrate the pivotal role of DR and DERs in realizing India’s ambitions to remain one of the fastest-growing economies in the world while meeting the country’s need for energy security and sustainability”, he added.
PTC India and AutoGrid have identified the following strategic areas to collaborate on:
- Automated Demand Response leveraging Residential Air Conditioning Systems and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system at Commercial and Industrial sites
- Integration of Energy Storage, Solar PV, Electrical Vehicles and other DERs for grid support, balancing and decarbonization
- Structured Renewable Energy or Hybrid solar/wind/battery storage contracts – for large C&I consumers and utilities
PTC India Ltd., a Government of India initiative, is the pioneer in starting a power market in India. The Company has maintained its leadership position in power trading since inception.