How cold storage should contribute to grid stability

21.01.2025

Source: E & M powernews

AI is set to turn industrial cold stores into decentralized energy storage facilities. The German Federal Environmental Foundation (DBU) is funding a corresponding project via a new initiative.

The Bremen-based start-up Flexality believes that industrial and commercial cold storage facilities can contribute to grid stability in Germany. To this end, the young company has developed a self-learning artificial intelligence (AI) that helps cold storage operators optimize their electricity costs according to spot market prices.

The AI energy management (EMS) software developed by Flexality is called "Fenoms". The start-up uses it to evaluate operating data and links it to electricity price forecasts. According to Flexality, cold storage facilities could also take on the function of energy storage by using energy more effectively and therefore more cheaply.

"This stabilizes the grids and secures the supply of cold chains," explains Flexality founder Dyke Wilke. "If the system detects surplus electricity peaks from renewable energy at lower prices, the temperature in the cooling systems is lowered more than usual. If less green energy is available, the temperature is raised again," says Wilke. By matching energy requirements and prices, he says that energy consumption and CO2 emissions can be reduced. Flexality says it plans to involve energy suppliers in the future to increase the use of renewables.

According to estimates, there are more than 750 large cold stores across Germany that could be considered for this. The German Federal Environmental Foundation (DBU) is funding the project with 125,000 euros. With its recently launched "Storage and grids" funding initiative, the DBU aims to provide additional impetus for the success of the energy transition, as the foundation wrote in a press release on January 20.

According to the young start-up, the storage capacities of deep-freeze storage facilities have not yet been used in an optimized manner. Wilke's start-up expects to be able to reduce CO2 consumption per cold storage facility by "at least 10 percent". In addition, the electricity costs for companies should be reduced by around 20 percent annually, according to Flexality.

Market and state invest in Flexality

Founded in 2022, the Bremen-based start-up successfully completed a financing round in the fall of 2024. The round was led by cleantech investor Tobias Schütt. The amount of the financing was not disclosed. Flexality also received start-up funding from the state of Bremen last spring. Start-ups from Bremen and Bremerhaven receive up to 150,000 euros in BRE-up funding.

Author: Heidi Roider