SMOOTHING THE GRID

Annual Worldwide Revenues from Frequency Regulation Services Will Surpass $27 Billion by 2022

April 26, 2012 (Pike Research)

"Frequency regulation services, which balance the fluctuations between electricity generation and electrical load and manage the variability in the grid’s frequency output, have traditionally been tied to the wholesale energy market. Today, a second key driver has emerged: intermittent renewable energy. Solar PV, wind, and other intermittent resources are causing frequency instabilities on the electrical grid that require more extensive regulation capability across a wider swath of the grid…

"…In addition, in the face of energy security concerns, major economies are mandating changes in energy mixes globally, altering the mix of technologies available to deliver frequency regulation. New opportunities in the frequency regulation sector are emerging in countries that are liberalizing or deregulating electricity markets, and… in fully deregulated markets that are changing market rules to differentiate the quality of frequency regulation delivered by various technologies…"

click to enlarge

"…According to a new report from Pike Research, the amount of frequency regulation required globally is expected to increase over the next decade, thanks to increased volatility in both generation and load. The total value of the frequency regulation market will grow from $19.5 billion in 2012 to $27.2 billion in 2022…a compound annual growth rate of 3.5%. "Under a more aggressive scenario, revenue from frequency regulation services could reach $56.8 billion in 2022…Whereas the cost of technology typically decreases over time, that is not the case for a service like frequency regulation…[W]ith greater economic activity (and thus demand for energy), more and more diversity in generation assets globally, and increased market liberalization…the value of frequency regulation [is likely to] increase over time…[P]er megawatt hour…Pike Research expects…frequency regulation [to] be worth more in 2022 than in 2012…"