Press Release
Formation of Agile Energy X, Inc., a New Company on a Mission to Accelerate the Introduction of Renewable Energy
By flexibly creating power demand, Agile Energy X will create digital and environmental value while mitigating grid congestion.
September 21, 2022
TEPCO Power Grid, Inc.
Agile Energy X, Inc.
Tokyo Electric Power Grid, Inc. has formed a new company, Agile Energy X, Inc. (hereinafter referred to as, “Agile Energy X”) that will begin operations on October 1, 2022.
Agile Energy X will further accelerate the introduction of renewable energies by operating cutting-edge distributed computing systems that run on power generated from renewable energy sources (hereinafter referred to as, “renewables”) thereby creating/providing digital and environmental value.
Renewable energies for which output fluctuates depending on the weather (hereinafter referred to as, “variable renewables”), such as solar power, tend to be subject to curtailment and grid constraints due to the necessity for the grid to maintain supply and demand balance thereby resulting in surplus power that cannot be effectively utilized.
In recent years, curtailment of such renewables has increased across Japan, and grid congestion has made it difficult to interconnect renewables. As a result, renewable energy resources are not being sufficiently leveraged despite the fact that it is estimated that Japan has the potential to double the current amount of electricity generated from renewables, according to a study by the Ministry of Environment*1.
*1 Source: Overview of section on introducing renewable energies in the Ministry of Environment’s “Japan’s Potential to Utilize Renewable Energy (tentative title)” report (in Japanese only)
https://www.renewable-energy-potential.env.go.jp/RenewableEnergy/doc/gaiyou3.pdf
In order to overcome this situation and increase the amount of renewables being used in Japan, Agile Energy X aspires to provide solutions throughout the country to mitigate curtailment of renewables and grid constraints by flexibly creating power demand in response to supply and demand changes.
The actual method for creating power demand entails using “Distributed Computing” technology by which a large number of computers used for AI/machine learning, genome analysis, CG rendering, cryptocurrency mining*2, etc. are connected via a network to enable a large volume of computations to be executed simultaneously. Distributed computing that runs on renewables will create digital value as well as environmental value, such as “Green Power Certificates,” which will lead to the promotion of decarbonization by local governments, increased profits for renewable energy operators, increased local energy production for local consumption, and the revitalization of local economies.
*2 Refers to validating cryptocurrency, such as bitcoin, etc., transactions on a blockchain network and adding them to a distributed ledger to locate them. Miners receive cryptocurrency as a reward for completing "blocks" of verified transactions, which are added to the blockchain.
In the future, Agile Energy X also aspires to provide solutions that utilize distributed computing for transmission and distribution operators to help alleviate grid congestion.
Through these solutions, TEPCO Power Grid and Agile Energy X will continue to pave the way to carbon neutrality.
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