National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET) has teamed up with the Met Office on a weather data project that aims to support and increase the capacity on the transmission network for wind and solar power.
The project will explore the benefits of using more accurate weather forecasts to boost capacity on the electricity overhead transmission power lines, enabling more renewable energy to flow.
Currently, the electricity transmission system is limited by the individual power rating or capacity of the circuits.
That paired with the growth in renewable electricity generation make power flows across the existing grid infrastructure change, especially at peak periods.
National Grid said that traditionally assumptions about weather conditions have been conservative leading to assets operating at ratings lower than the actual capacity.
The £545,000 project is funded through the Ofgem’s Network Innovation Allowance mechanism.
Anusha Arva, Innovation Engineer for National Grid Electricity Transmission, said: “With the knowledge and expertise from the Met Office, more accurate and granular weather data can better determine where and when we can boost capacity. Inevitably, this means we can become less reliant on fossil fuel-based generation, avoiding constraint payments to generators when we need to address grid congestion.”
Ian Pearman, Senior Scientist for the Met Office, said: “This innovative project has the potential to provide significant improvements in weather forecast accuracy for the energy sector alongside novel approaches to quantifying uncertainty in the forecast.”
