Social virtual energy networks: Exploring innovative business models of prosumer aggregation with virtual power plants

Virtual Power Plant (VPP) have been proposed as an effective way to aggregate large portfolios of Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) and coordinate them to behave as a single functional unit in both the network and the market. This research narrative proposes that business models that can combine Internet platforms such as Peer-to-peer networks, with VPP to collectively manage DERs, are ideal systems for socially innovative business models to accomplish scale and replication and drive systemic change in the power system. This project lays conceptual foundations to design and simulate such a system. An urban social electricity-trading network is presented using the City of Melbourne as case study. Modelling is performed by applying an optimisation framework to a portfolio of household datasets with solar, simulated storage and flexible demand capabilities; a local community windfarm and large business buildings. Initial simulations show that internal energy trading between members of such a social energy network is highly dependent on local market conditions. However, having the ability to simultaneously operate as a small-scale generator, retailer and demand response coordinator might be the factors allowing these alternative business models to be feasible under various conditions.