Greening the Smart Grid [is] a collaboration between Community Power and Clean Tech Renewable Energy Ltd to use a solar-powered microgrid to extend the growing season on local allotments.
This is to energise the citizenry of Limerick City to become actively involved in the energy transition and food production in the Georgian district and its environs - short projects and hands-on growing food in an EMS-enabled microgrid.
The Greening the Grid project has been the focus of raising awareness and enabling the community to participate in the decarbonisation of society and the economy. The project is situated in Clare Street Public Park where allotments have been situated for the growing of produce.
Cleantech consulted with the Greening the Grid team to develop a PV and Battery system that would make the best use of renewable energy to provide energy to heat the soil of the selected allotments to maintain growing temperature within the allotments even during the winter period.
‘Cleantech were delighted to work with Community Power on the Greening the Grid Project, it gave us a great opportunity to showcase the versatility of our Ampere Battery system outside its normal home environment. It was also great to work within the Limerick +CityXChange project with Limerick County Council with their visionary leadership’.
- Gus Kearney, MD of Cleantech
Cleantech provided a strategic environmental management system (SEMS) Innovation that adds control and intelligence to an energy system. SEMS is self-managed and takes automatic decisions in order to reach the maximum savings in the electricity bill, through:
- Solar resource prediction (if available)
- User consumption patterns (auto-learning)
- Real-time analysis and prediction of electricity prices.
- Automatic and adaptative system management
We hope Greening The Smart Grid will enable Limerick citizens to reimagine the public realm in the city centre, as a Positive Energy District. Using renewable energy, smart technology, and horticulture - together with public events we will bring the citizens (as participants) on a journey through the Greening of the Smart Grid. With no upper limit on the number of workshop participants - we aim to make the participants ambassadors for positive energy districts.
How will it work?
Microclimates involving mobile allotments with undersoil heating, powered by solar PV & battery complete with EMS (energy management system) & mobile app for participants - growing fruit, veg & flowers on the smart green grid. The EMS allows for the aggregation of two or more allotments, whether adjoining or not.
Who is it for?
The target audience is the residents of the Georgian Quarter, and any Limerick city residents who would like to put some time & effort into the allotments i.e. the preparation and growing of food, powered by distributed energy resources, where the energy production & consumption is monitored & managed in real time in conjunction with the participants.
This project was tested in O’Brien Park in the city centre. Data was gathered continuously from October 2021 to April 2022, and culminated in a public event during +Limerick’s City Engage Week. The event was attended by the public and those interested in renewable energy, technology and urban food growing.