Pooling storage: clusters and a virtual power plant for FCR, aFRR and arbitrage
A single battery serves one market per time window. A cluster can serve several, because different units take different windows. Prequalification and the minimum size remain the hurdle.
Minimum size and prequalification
FCR, aFRR and mFRR each require a 1 MW minimum bid under Bundesnetzagentur decision BK6-21-042 of 28 April 2022. A unit of 100 to 300 kW does not reach that alone. In a pool the threshold is made up of several units.
Prequalification with the transmission operator, proof of controllability and a marketing contract are what turn a pool into a bid. A direct marketer or the operator of a virtual power plant does the marketing. I do not.
Sequential, not stacked at the same time
A battery has one capacity window at a time. Charging, discharging and holding capacity exclude each other. Multi-use means the controller picks the window that pays most. The revenues are not added.
The cluster does not change that for a single unit. It changes that, in the same quarter-hour, another unit can take another window. The pool serves several markets while each battery stays with one.
What the mandate covers
I set out the structure: which units should join, which markets are realistic at the minimum size, which points the marketer’s contract must settle. Contract patterns and escrow belong there. The trading decision does not.
I accompany the choice of marketer. I do not take a commission on their revenue. Operation of the virtual power plant stays with the party licensed to run it.
In the same context
Common questions
Why is one home battery not enough for balancing energy?
FCR, aFRR and mFRR each require a 1 MW minimum bid since decision BK6-21-042 of 28 April 2022. A 100 kW battery stays below that. A cluster reaches the threshold together.
Does the cluster serve several markets at once?
The pool can, because different units take different windows. Each battery stays with one market per window. The revenues are not added up.
Do you market the battery?
No. I advise. I am not a marketer and not a trader. Bids are placed by the direct marketer or the virtual-power-plant operator.
Is prequalification part of the mandate?
I sort the requirements and accompany the papers along the path the transmission operator describes. Technical prequalification of the asset stays with the people responsible for it.