AI for smart energy: promise and challenges
Sustainability in the face of the climate crisis, energy sovereignty and the effective integration of renewals into the grid all require new approaches in the energy sector. FCAI’s webinar on AI for Sustainable Energy and Heating addressed these topics with the latest insights from research and industry partners. Video and slides from the webinar are available, and below is a summary of the discussion.
The green transition is not just about moving from the use of fossil fuels to renewables. The management of intermittent energy sources, power generation from storage, responding to weather and changing operating environments, interfacing with the energy market—these are some of the use cases where artificial intelligence can be deployed. Energy prices, and the complexity and regulation of energy systems, are only increasing. Optimization and prediction are the advantages that AI can bring to the equation. For example, AI can allow rapid decision-making so that unpredictable renewable energy like wind can be captured, integrated into the grid and dynamically priced for the market. The volatility in energy production and consumption calls for a level of flexibility that hasn’t previously been available to power generators, consumers or the market. Flexibility in the energy transition was emphasized by several webinar panelists as an absolute must.
The biggest impact of AI for energy now may be at the household scale, where a box in the building can handle intelligent energy decisions, like charging electric vehicles at home. At the city level or even more broadly, optimization becomes complex, as not all energy users in the area will agree, for example, on the use of renewables. On the plus side, as energy sources become more diverse, the reliability of an energy system will increase. Using AI to put all these pieces together, and even to sell locally harnessed renewable energy back to the grid, can be a boon for sustainability and affordability. Grid operators and district heating providers in Finland are deploying analytics platforms to intelligently control heating and electricity distribution.
Employing an AI energy control system comes with a cost, of course. Payback times and energy savings may not be immediately obvious. And there are yet unexplored ways to harness AI for energy savings, for example using data to track habits and consumption patterns and using incentives to get people to change their energy use. As both Finland and the EU have set ambitious sustainability goals, and dependable energy becomes ever more crucial, AI will become an important component in the smart energy transition.
For further information or to discuss how FCAI can collaborate with your research group or company, contact:
Heikki Ailisto, FCAI Industry & Society Program lead and Research Professor at VTT
heikki.ailisto at vtt.fi
Terhi Kajaste, FCAI corporate relations manager
terhi.kajaste at aalto.fi
+358 50 327 5299