Switzerland-based Hive Power has launched Flexo to optimize grid-connected appliances, enabling flexibility in markets with dynamic tariffs. The Flexo solution has interfaces for integrating inverters, home energy management systems, charging point management systems, meters and other Internet of Things (IoT) devices.
Switzerland-based Hive Power has launched new software to enable the energy optimization of flexible grid-connected assets in markets with dynamic load-variable electricity rates.
“Flexo is hardware independent and made for large groups of flexible assets. It is a demand management software to manage energy flows,” said Gianluca Corbellini, Founder and CEO of Hive Power. pv magazine. “We have developed an algorithmic layer to predict how much flexibility there is, and then determine which assets we need to send in time.”
The company, a spin-off of the Swiss University of Applied Sciences (SUPSI), provides its software that enables network flexibility on a subscription basis. Customers include businesses, such as solar community owners and electric vehicle (EV) fleets, as well as energy service providers and distribution system operators.
The Flexo solution has interfaces to integrate inverters, home energy management systems (HEMS), charging point management systems, meters and other Internet of Things (IoT) devices.
According to the company, it is suitable for solar PV farms, energy communities, EV farms, small and medium battery storage systems, and basically any of the newer types of grid flexibility assets.
The software enables aggregated capacity, optimized demand, lower expenses through time-shifting of electricity consumption and access to new revenues by providing ancillary services to balance the electricity grid.
Several trends are converging to drive demand for such software: rising energy costs, energy price volatility, and increasing penetration of renewable solar and wind energy. Hive Power says it is addressing such trends by enabling pooled capacity and access to additional revenue streams through demand response contracts with local and national networks, as well as lower energy costs and greater transparency with monitoring and reporting functionality.
A white label version is available to enable branded services. It supports end-user access to cost and benefit reporting and coaching through app software.
Founded in 2017, Hive Power already has projects, partners and customers in the automotive, renewable energy, grid and automotive industries. One of its customers is Clyde Mobility, a Swiss electric car subscription company, which uses Flexo to pool the capacity of more than 1,000 electric vehicles to provide grid support services to the national transmission operator.
Hive Power recently raised €3.5 million ($3.6 million) in a seed round with Swiss energy supplier Axpo and early-stage investor Creadd Ventures, based in Ticino, along with a loan from the Swiss Technology Fund. The new capital is intended to stimulate access to new markets in Europe.
“We have a strong footprint in Switzerland, Italy and Southern Europe and are now expanding into German-speaking markets,” said Corbellini.
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