UK demand management firm Kiwi Power has proclaimed a 100% success rate in accurately forecasting the three Triad peak demand periods during the 2012/13 season.
Kiwi Power advised its customers to reduce or shift their power use when the UK’s demand for electricity was at its peak on these three specific half hourly periods, saving substantial sums on electricity bills, including one hospital that saved about £100,000 ($153,000).
The transmission network use of system charges, or ‘Triads’, is the means by which industrial and commercial electricity consumers indirectly pay for the electricity transmission network in the UK. Triad charges are proportional to a business’s electricity demand at the three highest national system winter peaks.
The charges are regionally based and are expected to be as high as £34 for each kilowatt-hour of demand during the triads in some regions next year. Triad charges can amount to over £50,000 of avoidable annual energy costs for each medium-large energy user.
Triad periods are not known in advance, but can be forecast, as they typically occur between 4.30pm and 6.30pm on weekdays during cold weather from November to February. These occurred on 29th November and 12th, December 2012 and 16th January 2013.
On these days, the UK experienced severe weather, including temperatures as low as -20°C in some areas, along with hail and snowfall. January 2013 proved to be Britain’s snowiest month since December 2010.
The late January freeze cost up to £4 billion in damages to the economy. Despite the coldest February for 22 years, there were no triad periods in February.
“If a business is able to reduce its electricity demand during the triad periods, it can realise significantly reduced triad charges on its energy bill,” said Yoav Zingher, Director of Kiwi Power. “We work closely with customers to develop a robust triad management strategy for the periods that have a high likelihood of being declared as triads for that year,” he continued.