ELEXIA Use Cases Definition
by EDP
In the last months of the project, part of the focus has been on advancing the Requirements engineering and use case definitions for the pilot sites - and producing a preliminary version of the deliverable that defines the use cases for each pilot and a KPI methodology.
The first step we have taken to correctly define the Use Cases (UCs) was characterizing the pilot’s energy system. For each site, the initial conditions were identified (e.g., demand/supply data), along with the involved assets, stakeholders, and technologies, as well as the pilot’s goals.
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The Portuguese pilot is a significant hub port in the Ibero-Atlantic region, strategically positioned at the crossroads of major international maritime routes called Port of Sines. The most relevant stakeholders for ELEXIA are APS (Administração dos Portos de Sines e do Algarve S.A.), and the main terminals within the port such as the LNG terminal, the container terminal. Other installations such as a Cooling Storage Warehouse will also be evaluated. In respect to the system energy supply and demand, the Port of Sines wants to fully decarbonize by 2050. It is planned for the renewable energy sources (RES) to increase to 10 MW on PV, 7 MW on wave energy, and 25 MW of offshore wind by 2050. Also, one of the port’s objectives is to integrate the port and transport system: both maritime (through OPS) and road transport (EVs, trucks and railway). Finally, some use cases were identified of major relevance to be demonstrated in the ELEXIA’s platform, such as the energy management of HVAC both in Office buildings and in an industrial warehouse, the management of EV chargers, optimization of the LNG Operation Assets, and the integration with JUL, an internal software already in use. An investment planning for the future of the port will also be an objective of ELEXIA regarding the Portuguese pilot.
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The Danish pilot is taking place in Høje-Taastrup Municipality which is one of the Danish capital area’s largest and greenest municipalities. This site engages very different stakeholders from residential to industrial sectors, some of these are VEKS (local district heating company), Høje Taastrup Municipality, School (Borgerskolen), an office hub (MindFuture), and a new Children’s and Culture Centre. Considering the site’s energy system, VEKS district heating relies primarily on RES such as biomass and surplus heat from waste-to-energy (WtE) plants. In the future, the production side is expected to change from primarily central production from larger units to more decentralized units such as geothermal energy, seawater heat pumps, excess heat from data centres and other industries. About the assets to be integrated in ELEXIA’s platform, the main ones considered are a recent Thermal Pit Storage and HVAC assets – both in School Centres and Office Buildings.
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The Norwegian pilot is in Dokken, a central area within the city of Bergen, at the coast of Norway and it is an industrial-urban-residential environment. The following stakeholders were pointed out as the most relevant ones: Bergen Municipality, BKK (Distribution System Operator), Eviny Termo (owns and runs the thermal grids of Bergen), BIR (owner and operator of the waste collection system and waste incineration plant), Plug (operator of shore power in the harbour area), Bergen Havn (operates and manages the harbour), Bergen light rail, Institute for Marine Research, residents, public services, and others. Considering the energy being supplied to Dokken, it is mostly coming from hydro and wind power but also thermal sources. It is expected in the future that electricity self-consumption will increase as the potential investment in local electrical generation mainly based on PV could contribute with up to 4 200 kWh/year in 2035 and 10 032 kWh/year in 2050. For this pilot, few existing equipment is meant to be integrated in ELEXIA’s platform since the pilot is heavily focused future planning. However, the most important assets identified are: Electrical grid assets, district heating and cooling grid assets, water grid assets, and waste collection grid assets.
Τhe UCs are defined with the primary purpose of providing a clear and concise understanding of how a system should be managed designed, developed, and tested to meet the needs of its users. The UCs are established so they consider every module inside of each ELEXIA’s tool. These tools can be divided into three large categories: Digital Services Platform, System Planning Toolbox, and Energy Management System (EMS).
Also, they allow the tool developers and stakeholders to acquire a deeper understanding of how the system will be used and help identify potential issues before the system is implemented.
15 Use Cases have been defined and will be demonstrated in ELEXIA’s project. They are divided into three main categories according to the pilot they are associated with: Portuguese pilot – Port of Sines, Norwegian pilot – Dokken area, Danish pilot – Copenhagen area, including Høje-Taastrup municipality. A fourth category was also created to define a Use Case common to all pilots, related with the storage and sharing of data.
To ensure harmonization and replicability of the UCs, these are described according to the IEC 62559-2 standard which follows a specific template structured by the next seven sections:
Description of the Use Case,
Diagrams of Use Case,
Technical Details,
Step by Step Analysis of the Use Case,
Information Exchanged,
Requirements and Common Terms and
Definitions.
The forthcoming iteration of this deliverable will encompass a more extensive elucidation of the UCs, interactions among actors, and the seamless integration of tools, as the project tasks evolve.
