Flexible demand for variable supply

The interplay between grid demand and variable energy generation holds significant implications for the economics of renewable energy, which can detract investment from the sector. At a time when demand for computing power is ballooning, and the transition to sustainable electricity grows ever more urgent, the need for innovation at the intersection of the two issues intensifies.

Peak-shifting an intermittent energy supply using Batteries, Pumped Hydro, Compressed Air, Hydrogen Generation, Flywheels, Supercapacitors, etc.storage assets is often considered the panacea for sustainable electricity, but the practicality of installing them carries one huge drawback — steep upfront costs and slow rates of return effectively decrease the profitability of electricity production. Our solution is to provide a flexible demand to match the variable supply.

Powerbox can improve the financial profile of renewable deployments supporting further investment into the energy transition
RENEWABLE
GENERATOR UNDERVALUED
OR CURTAILED
ENERGY
INTERMITTENT OR STRANDED POWER
COST
$0—$50
per MWh
PORTABLE DATA CENTRE
NEAR
CONSTANT
COMPUTE POWER
11101100101100111000001111001101011101010101100000110110110101001101110100111011001011001110
REVENUE
$150—$400
per MWh
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DISTRIBUTED
COMPUTING BLOCKCHAIN,
MACHINE LEARNING,
VISUALISATION,
FORECASTING

Decarbonise
Distributed
Computing

Powerbox is a portable, modular data center designed to be compatible with the intermittent nature of renewable energy. Electricity is diverted to Powerbox on-site for use in High-Performance Computing tasks, allowing generation to continue during curtailment.

For energy operators, this means diversification from wholesale energy prices and Power Purchase AgreementsPPA. With Powerbox, operators gain access to an additional revenue stream completely decoupled from the mainstream energy market.

Powerbox deployments are fine-tuned to suit the specific characteristics and revenue goals of your site. Possible configurations range from minimal grid impact, consuming nothing but excess energy; through to maximum performance modes to optimise computing uptime and profitability.

Model your site
2.6TWhTotal wasted uk
wind energy 2019 Source: Renewable Energy Foundation
Available Wind Power
Grid Demand
Surplus Electricity
Source: Data acquired by Powerbox on-site in Orkney, Scotland over the course of 24 hours during typical weather conditions. Actual grid demand load (MW) is measured against generation estimates based on wind speed regardless of curtailment, supplied by internal sensors of Enercon E-44 wind assets on site.

The path to net zero

Price cannibalisation

In the UK, wind and solar are increasingly becoming destroyers of their own price — subsidy driven investments in offshore wind fleets diminish the power price that onshore wind and solar receive in the market. As a result, power-market revenue for onshore wind in the 2030s is currently projected to be Source: BNEF 1H 2020 U.K. Power Market Outlook$70/kW short of what would be needed to make a return on investment.

Continued investment in Renewables

Renewable operators must find ways to improve the financial profile of their deployments, or investment in the sector could be at risk of stagnation. Powerbox can drastically reduce volatility and increase average effective power sale price for renewable operators by providing Powerbox autonomously adjusts power draw to utilise surplus or undervalued electricity in real timedemand-on-demand to monetise every last available kilowatt, presenting a lower risk investment proposition.

Economics