Want to increase your chances in the next renewables auction?

Do you want to increase the chances of being awarded in the next capacity tender for transmission grid nodes? Do you need to reduce the risk of selecting new auction points in which to install new generation? To do this, the first step is to carry out a detailed analysis of the installation and node you want to bid for, based on the award criteria of the capacity auction and that can help you to size the installation with the necessary equipment to obtain the maximum number of available points without losing sight of the cost of the equipment. In other words, always looking for the optimisation between the size of the installation and the cost involved.  

What are the award criteria to which I should pay particular attention?

But you may ask, what are the award criteria to which I should pay particular attention? The projects submitted will be awarded on the basis of time, technology-related, socio-economic and environmental criteria. But not all of them have the same weight.   

Everything will depend on the characteristics of the specific project but, in general, it is important to pay special attention to the criteria associated with the technology, which add up to a maximum of 25 points of which at least 25% must be fulfilled to be awarded the tender. Within these, the tender takes into account self-consumption, the existence of storage, hybridisation, repowering and other technical and quite specific criteria that must be worked on properly in order to obtain the maximum points in this section. If you do not have in-depth technical knowledge, it can be helpful to have a partner assist you in analysing the kinetic energy and short-circuit power of the synchronous machine, the damping of oscillations and automatic power reduction systems. Properly assessing these criteria can give you a competitive edge over your competitors in the auction. 

How can CIRCE help you with the criteria associated with technology?

CIRCE can help you define the size of the optimal equipment needed in the installation that will allow you to obtain the maximum possible points at the lowest possible cost. In other words, CIRCE, taking into account the photovoltaic and wind power capacity you want to install, will size the necessary equipment (batteries, synchronous compensators...) and carry out the necessary studies, always taking into account the costs of each piece of equipment. The points analysed are:

• Storage: size of storage
• Synchronous machine: synchronous compensator
• Oscillation damping capacity: PSSE / POD-P /POD-Q
• Additional reactive power capacity: U-Ϙ/Pmax and P-Ϙ/Pmax diagrams
• Robustness: voltage dips
• Automatic derating systems: technical capability to reduce output from full load to zero in less than or equal to 3 seconds..

Environmental criteria are becoming increasingly important

On the other hand, environmental criteria are becoming increasingly important, with a total of 22 points, of which at least 40% must be obtained and no score of zero for the environmental impact of the installation and the energy evacuation line, respectively. However, the required socio-economic criteria must not be neglected either. Among them, obtaining the Carbon Footprint of the organisation that is going to build the renewable park is key to get two extra points.