Brazil's grid operator ONS placed distributed energy resources (DERs) and lowering demand during crisis at the top of its list of five priority topics for the year.
DERs are smaller generation and storage units, located on the consumer's side of the meter. DERs can include distributed generation, energy storage units, electric vehicles, recharge structures and energy efficiency.
The operator's decision to make this its top priority comes from the large growth DERs have been experiencing in the country, especially distributed generation. The country's grid-connected matrix grew by 4.4pc between March 2021 and March 2022, while distributed energy capacity grew by 87pc, according to the mines and energy ministry's latest data on installed generation capacity.
The second topic on the dispatcher's list, the diminishing of demand during periods of crisis, drew ONS' attention after last year's hydropower crisis. The government tried to launch a voluntary demand decrease program, encouraging consumers to use less electricity, which was regarded by the sector as a failure. On this subject, market players see other initiatives, using technology to inform consumer choices, with better eyes.
The third item ONS set is the improvement of ancillary services, which are the necessary services to keep the system properly operating. The operator intends to improve the current services and is considering creating new ones, to provide more reliability and flexibility to the system.
Access to the transmission system comes next on the list of priorities. The operator is reexamining how authorizations for the use of transmission lines work, considering the eminent changes brought on by the modernization of the power market. Players point out that there is a need to reconsider privileges granted to the regulated market for this access, hindering free market clients.
The last item on the operator's agenda is its operations and prices. ONS expects to maintain and improve its computational models, used for the country's electrical planning. There is pressure from the sector for the operator to put its models through an extensive review, as they often show scenarios too far detached from reality. Just last year, ONS' model showed how volatile it can be when spot price PLD presented a 48pc drop in a matter of two days, at the end of November.
