EDF’s Role in the BIG LEAP Project

18Sep

EDF’s Role in the BIG LEAP Project

By Interview 0 Comments

As a BESS operator, EDF partner in the BIG LEAP project, focuses on the testing and validation of the newly developed interoperable battery management system (BMS). For more insights, read the full interview with EDF’s Emeric Brun and Thomas Salez.

What is EDF’s main contribution to the BIG LEAP project?
As a world leader in low-carbon electricity generation, the EDF Group operates numerous Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) across Europe and globally. We are strongly committed to further developing flexibility solutions over the next decade to support the energy transition.
As a BESS operator, EDF’s contribution to the Big Leap project focuses on the testing and validation phase of the newly developed interoperable battery management system (BMS). EDF leads Work Package (WP) 7, which aims to demonstrate the BMS in real-life second-life BESS environments. Within this WP, the Big Leap BMS will be tested on two physical demonstrators—one at EDF Lab Les Renardières in France and another at Eaton in Czechia—as well as one virtual demonstrator at Masen in Morocco.

The 200 kW demonstrator at EDF will focus on front-of-the-meter use cases and will use second-life batteries from various chemistries and sources, including maritime, stationary, and mobility applications.

How will EDF ensure the energy storage system (ESS) functions effectively in all three test scenarios, including the physical setups in front and behind the meter, as well as the virtual setup with solar power?

The key to ensuring that all three demonstrators perform as expected and enable the real-life demonstration of Big Leap’s innovations lies in the active participation of all partners hosting the demonstrators in the upstream work packages. This will ensure that the demonstrators’ technical requirements are fully considered during the design phases.
Specific attention is also given to the project timeline, as delays in earlier phases could accumulate and reduce the time allocated for the test scenarios. Finally, strong and regular coordination among all partners will ensure that any issues arising during project development are promptly addressed and resolved.

What are the key measures EDF will use to confirm that the ESS is effective and reliable in each of the different test scenarios?
The ESS will be tested using our 1000 VDC – 800 A battery testing facility, which can simulate various real-world scenarios. The BESS will be placed in our testing container, which is equipped with thermal management and safety systems. It will undergo charging and discharging cycles for both low-frequency (arbitration, PV smoothing) and high-frequency (frequency regulation) front-of-the-meter applications:

• Arbitration Use Case: This typically involves trading energy blocks on the market, with the BESS acting as both a producer (discharging) and consumer (charging) based on electricity prices.
• PV Smoothing Use Case: This involves a BESS co-located with a solar farm, used to smooth the power output of the combined solar and storage site.
• Frequency Regulation Use Case: The battery storage system maintains the grid frequency at its target value (50 Hz in Europe) by discharging when the frequency is too low and charging when it is too high.

These three real-world use cases will be used to evaluate the effectiveness and interoperability of the innovative BMS, using a set of pre-defined Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), such as response time and the accuracy of state estimators (state of health, state of safety, state of charge).

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