The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) announced that Enel X would receive $3.7 million in funding to demonstrate and expand flexible demand solutions in the commercial and industrial refrigeration sector.
The ‘Unlocking Flexible Demand in the Commercial Refrigeration Sector’ initiative aims to recruit 440 supermarkets and 13 refrigerated warehouses to aggregate 20.9 MW of flexible demand throughout the National Electricity Market.
Supermarkets and warehouses will participate in Enel X’s virtual power plant (VPP), which will supply services to Australia’s electricity system. The facilities engaged will assist in easing grid limitations and promote a safe and dependable power supply to all users while being financially rewarded through Enel X’s VPP.
In Australia, commercial and industrial refrigeration has the potential to provide 500 MW of flexible demand across supermarkets, grocery stores, beverage shops, and warehouses. To alleviate grid congestion, flexible demand entails coordinated electrical load orchestration. As variable renewable sources such as wind and solar generate an increasing part of Australia’s power output, ARENA said solutions to assist balance supply and demand are necessary.
According to ARENA, refrigeration offers flexible demand due to its thermal mass, ensuring that temperatures stay steady even when equipment is lowered. When small changes in power utilisation are aggregated to scale, they can have a large influence on power usage without creating visible changes in users or product quality.
Enel X has engaged with a Tier 1 grocery chain as an initial supermarket partner, with a 20-store trial expanding to up to 250 stores participating in the VPP. Lineage Logistics will additionally contribute 13 refrigerated warehouse locations to the project. Enel X aggressively seeks commercial refrigeration businesses in the supermarket, grocery, beverage, convenience, and last mile logistics to fulfil ARENA’s 440 store funding support.
The project aims to establish the business case for flexible demand solutions in refrigeration and to derisk the adoption of new technologies for prospective demand response providers.
ARENA CEO Darren Miller stated that the project could pave the way for more investment in flexible demand.
Miller noted that Australia’s electricity grid is evolving, and a more variable supply requires more flexible demand.
“Commercial refrigeration can unlock this opportunity at a material scale, so we’re excited to see the Enel X project rolled out across Australian supermarkets and other businesses with refrigeration. We want to see projects like this demonstrate the benefits of flexible demand — to individual electricity users and all users via a more efficient grid,” Miller said.
“By demonstrating and proving the technology to prospective users, we’re hoping to see increased uptake as electricity users look to it as an attractive option,” he added.
Enel X APAC Managing Director Jeff Renaud commented, “The energy market needs new ways to balance renewables and businesses need new ways to reduce energy costs. With ARENA’s support, we will prove that small-scale refrigeration systems, when plugged into a virtual power plant, can make a large-scale contribution to the renewable energy transition.”
ARENA previously provided a $9.1 million grant to Shell Energy Australia to trial flexible demand solutions in shopping malls, supermarkets, and distribution sites.
The ‘Unlocking Flexible Demand in the Commercial Refrigeration Sector’ project is scheduled to be finished in 2027.
