The following story presents a project whose contribution is relevant for the first objective of the Energy Priority Area: to coordinate the regional energy polices.

To produce and use high share of renewable energy in the energy systems require regulatory provisions to make it possible for buildings. The high shares of energy obtained from fossil fuels are not displaced with green energy which threatens the environment and health of the population.

At present, there are tendencies to integrate energy-efficiency measures and renewable energy but they are not followed by adequate interactions to enable optimal operation of the building as a whole. Distribution system operators are reluctant in allowing renewable energy in the grid as it engages investments into the grid and increases costs for its correct and secure operation. Yet, they are interested in introducing coordinated energy exchange with buildings through dynamically changing conditions, e.g. via optimized hourly price profiles. Currently neither of the countries in the Danube Region has regulatory/ technology framework developed for inception of building-grid cross-spanning energy management schemes.

The 3SMART project, financed by the #DanubeTransnationalProgramme, aims to provide a technological and legislative setup for cross-spanning energy management of buildings, grids and major city infrastructures in the Danube Region. In other words, 3Smart is working on developing real-time energy management and demand response possible and economically viable for a large stock of buildings and infrastructure in settlements of the Danube Region, in order to make the energy system more prone to renewable energy integration and decrease the carbon footprint.

Thus, 3Smart provides optimal economical value to energy-efficiency and renewable energy investment in the building and at the same time it will result in optimized costs on the grid side whereas grid and buildings will also interact through exchanging energy and prices data. This is expected to motivate installation of distributed storages in both buildings and grids for improving energy security in the Danube Region.

To reach its main goal, 3Smart identified problems in the regulatory framework for adoption of real-time energy management and demand response and suggested solutions. It also designed a modular software tool for integrated real-time energy management of buildings and energy distribution grids, including demand response and pointed out how this tool can be also used in energy management of different infrastructures in settlements to further increase flexibility of energy demand. The software modules can be differently combined in order to attain optimal investment with respect to building operational costs reduction. Furthermore, the modules can be adapted for different building and grid configurations.

Pilot locations in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Hungary on versatile buildings and grids benefit of the installed developed platform for co-ordinated building and distribution grid energy management that will maintain comfort as required by the end-users and minimize the building energy costs. The buildings interact with the distribution grid and are able to provide a demand response service. For pilots in Slovenia and Austria, the platform is in preparation and it will be installed by the end of the year.

By implementing the project activities, 3Smart makes the energy system more prone to renewable energy integration and decrease our carbon footprint.

For further details on EUSDR contribution to regional energy policies, integrated energy market and technology development, follow the link: https://www.danube-energy.eu