Network Communications News (NCN) October 2017 | Page 38

UPS PRODUCTS
Industry first: UPS-as-a-Reserve Service to support the power grid
Power management company, Eaton has embarked on a
project to build an energy service for data centers. Set to
enable organisations to participate in grid level frequency
regulation by using UPS back-up power, the service has been
dubbed UPS-as-a-Reserve (UPSaaR). This data center industry
first has been launched in response to increased demands
such as maximisation of investments and an opportunity to
assist energy providers balance sustainable energy demands.
O nce compl ete, the s e r v ic e h o p e s to e na b l e d ata c e nte r
ope rators to immediate l y re s p o nd to gr id - l eve l p owe r
d e mands to keep frequ e nc ie s wit h in a l l owe d b o u nd a r i e s,
t here by avoiding grid-wid e p owe r o u ta ge s . Aim e d at l a rge
d ata center o perato rs , s u c h a s co l o c at io n o r c l o u d s er v i c e
provi ders , UP Sa a R a ims to b e l a u nc h e d a c ro s s E u ro p ea n
mar ket s by l ate 2017.
Working in close collaboration with Fortum, a leading energy
provider in the Nordic and Baltic countries, Eaton identified
that as the energy market moves from fuel-based towards
renewable energy, production has the potential to become
volatile and harder to both predict and balance electrical
supply. Energy providers are looking at the
Frequency Containment Reserve (FCR)
market to maintain grid frequency.
Acco rding to Eato n’s
research there is a growing
appet i te a mo ng s t data c e nte r
profession a l s to con s ide r s e l l ing
spare en ergy from their p owe r
syste ms ba ck to the m a r ket – to
be exact, 55% of res pond e nt s
wou ld con s ider this a p p ro a c h .
“This turns supply and
demand on its head. Instead of
just demanding power, data centers can support the grid and
be compensated for it,” says Janne Paananen, technology
manager for Power Quality, Eaton EMEA. “The data center
industry has been moving away from focusing solely on energy
and cost savings over the last five years, and it is now more
about making investments pay for themselves. Data center
professionals can create a revenue generation strategy around
assets that they already have, such as the UPS. There’s free
money lying on the floor, just waiting to be picked up.”
Extensive testing between Eaton and Fortum has proven
that the UPS can work as part of a virtual power plant to enable
data centers to take part in the high-value FCR and demand-
side market. The UPS, which uses stored power in the event
of a power failure, can be used to regulate demand from the
grid, as well as for up and down stream charging, essentially to
discharge the battery back to the grid. Data center operators
then have the option to support the grid in frequency regulation,
generating additional revenue to offset the total cost of
ownership of the UPS or as part of making the data center more
com