Taiwanese two-wheeler battery swapping company Gogoro is partnering with Enel X, an energy services provider, to deploy 2,500 of its battery swapping stations across 1,000 locations in Enel X’s Virtual Power Plant (VPP) to support Taiwan’s renewable energy transition.
The rollout follows the completion of a successful pilot program in 2022 and is the first commercial deployment of this technology in the world.
“We are entering a new era of smart energy infrastructure, and by integrating the Gogoro Network with the Enel X Virtual Power Plant (VPP) in Taiwan, we are providing a new energy resource. It is the first time this technology has been deployed this way in the world, and it creates a new Gogoro revenue stream beyond mobility,” said Horace Luke, founder and CEO of Gogoro.
In 2022, Gogoro and Enel X’s VPP pilot in Taiwan demonstrated that the Gogoro Network could safely pause the charging of their docked batteries if there was a grid imbalance or provide energy back to the power grid as demand required. Once the grid levels out again, Enel X’s VPP sends a signal to the Gogoro Network to safely restore grid consumption.
During a pilot last year, the network of battery-swapping stations successfully performed these services without causing any interruptions to Gogoro Network battery-swapping customers, demonstrating that the network is an ideal resource to support Taiwan’s energy transition. Integrating Gogoro Network battery swapping energy into the Enel X VPP in Taiwan has the same effect as bringing new energy generation online to meet energy demand.
Now, the companies have announced the first commercial deployment of nearly 1,300 GoStations across more than 500 locations throughout Taiwan this month. The plan is to deploy more than 2,500 GoStations in total across 1,000 locations by mid-2023 to support grid efficiency and stability.
“Our work with Gogoro showcases the vital role that VPPs will play in the transition to renewable energy,” said Jeff Renaud, Head of Enel X Asia and Oceania. “As new distributed resources are built to electrify and decarbonize our energy use, VPPs will unlock greater sustainability impacts and improved financial returns by connecting these assets to the broader energy system. Our platform does this by aggregating thousands of these ‘new energy’ assets into a resource that can help balance the intermittency of large-scale renewable power stations.”
“We believe our work with Gogoro is a world-leading demonstration of what VPPs can do, and we are honored and excited to continue growing our collaboration with them,” he added.
The Taiwan Power Corporation predicts that the future business opportunity in the electricity-sharing economy in Taiwan will be worth tens of billions of New Taiwan Dollars. It is also encouraging more businesses to participate through professional aggregators like Enel X, to work together toward Taiwan’s renewable energy future.
Gogoro, Enel X to deploy 2,500 battery swapping stations in Taiwan
Source: Tambay News
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