How can you participate in grid balancing?
There are two types of grid balancing, each with their own characteristics. We’ll explain to you what the differences are between these types:
rPOWR - Reserved Capacity Grid balancing:
With rPOWR, FlexiO reserves a part from your battery for grid balancing services for our grid operators. In Belgium this is Elia.
This means that it doesn’t matter which energy supplier or tariff you have. Everyone can participate in this type of grid balancing.
How does it work? FlexiO calculates what your savings will be for the next day, therefore FlexiO does a bidding to Elia for a part of your battery capacity. We will only place a bid high enough, that your revenue from rPOWR is bigger then your missed savings. Therefore you will always have profit by participating.
All revenue made through rPOWR, is paid out by LIFEPOWR 3 months after the participated month. This is because we have to wait for the payments from Elia to LIFEPOWR.
Read our rPOWR blog here.
ePOWR - Energy Market Grid balancing
With ePOWR, you can only participate if you have a compatible ePOWR Tariff. On our website, you can find a list with compatible ePOWR Tariffs to choose from.
We minimalise imbalance risk costs for the energy supplier. Therefore, the energy supplier is able to put a really competitive tariff in the market. See for yourself by doing the V-test.
How does it work? With ePOWR, we automatically bug and sell energy positions on wholesale markets (day-ahead and realtime imbalance). We look at realtime imbalance signals instead of having reserved capacity as with rPOWR. The result of ePOWR is that in the end, you pay less for your energy!
All revenue made through ePOWR, is immediately settled with your energy bill at the end of every month.
If you have a compatible ePOWR Tariff, you can participate in both rPOWR and ePOWR. In this case, also your revenues from rPOWR will be settled at the end of every month, via your energy bill. On top of that, your FlexiO subscription is 2 years free if you enroll an ePOWR Tariff!
Read our eBalancing blog here.
Read our Flex Tariff blog here.
Quick overview: the difference between ePOWR and rPOWR
rPOWR | ePOWR | |
|---|---|---|
For who? | Grid operators (eg. Elia) | Energy Suppliers (eg. Trevion) |
How to enroll? | Automatically for FlexiO users that have a functional FlexiObox. | For FlexiO users who enroll on a compatible ePOWR Tariff. |
How? | With reserved battery capacity through bidding. | Selling and buying energy positions in real-time, multiple markets. |
Revenue payout by | LIFEPOWR | Energy Supplier |
Payout terms | After 3 months | Every month via your energy bill |
Want to read more about the differences between rBalancing and eBalancing? Read our blog here.
To participate in Grid Balancing, you will need to go through a few steps:
rPOWR
Step 1: Register your FlexiO account
Register your FlexiO account on the MyFlexiO Mobile app to provide us with the necessary information, and FlexiO will start saving on your energy bill.
Step 2: Check these settings
First, a series of technical checks will be performed by LIFEPOWR to ensure that your installation is ready to participate in grid balancing. Additionally, your installation will be included in a group of other FlexiObox users. Once this group is large enough, participation in grid balancing can begin.
If there are any (technical) issues during these 2 phases, you will be informed so you can review and resolve them (together with your installer).
What can you already check yourself?
Does my installation have a battery?
Is my EAN code correctly entered?
Do I have a digital meter?
Was my energy rate correctly recorded? - You can adjust this via the FlexiO settings in your MyFlexiO app.
Step 3: External qualification
LIFEPOWR takes care of the external qualification with the grid operators. This involves both a check by the national grid operator Elia and a check by the distribution network operator (Fluvius, Sibelga, ORES, RESA).
It may take some time before the external qualification is completed. It's difficult to provide an exact date for this. We will, of course, keep you informed as soon as your participation is fully confirmed and FlexiO can start generating these earnings for you. In general it can take up to 12 weeks to start grid balancing via rBalancing.
New installations usually pass the technical checks quickly and will then soon be included in a group of participants.
You can check the status of grid balancing in the MyFlexiO app.
ePOWR
Step 1: Register your FlexiO account
Register your FlexiO account on the MyFlexiO Mobile app to provide us with the necessary information, and FlexiO will start saving on your energy bill.
Step 2: Check these settings
First, a series of technical checks will be performed by LIFEPOWR to ensure that your installation is ready to participate in grid balancing.
If there are any (technical) issues during these 2 phases, you will be informed so you can review and resolve them (together with your installer).
What can you already check yourself?
Does my installation have a battery?
Is my EAN code correctly entered?
Do I have a digital meter?
Was my energy rate correctly recorded? - You can adjust this via the FlexiO settings in your MyFlexiO app.
Step 3: Enroll on a ePOWR Tariff
Go to our website (link) to find an overview of our compatible ePOWR Tariffs.
Choose your tariff and enroll via the Energy Supplier’s website. Follow all the steps needed.
Once enrolled on the ePOWR Tariff, you automatically participate in ePOWR services.
You can check the status of grid balancing in the MyFlexiO app.