The shared consumption initiative launched by CTIC inRuralTech is a unique infrastructure that seeks to promote the use of existing natural resources in the territory, maximizing community benefits and constituting a demonstrative element from a technological and social perspective (thanks to its collective consumption model).
This makes it a visitable reference to promote the creation of energy communities in other rural geographic areas.
The photovoltaic plant installed in Peón consists mainly of 2 parts:
- Direct injection system: Formed by 68 photovoltaic panels of 450Wp and a three-phase inverter of 20kW for direct discharge to the grid.
- Battery storage system: Composed of 32 photovoltaic panels of 450Wp, 3 single-phase inverters of 4kW each, charge regulator and a set of LFP batteries with a capacity of 52.8 kWh.
The energy generated from the photovoltaic installation serves different facilities; the headquarters of CTIC RuralTech, which includes an intelligent climate simulator, as well as a small group of neighbors and the Peón school. It also has an electric vehicle charging point that allows 2 simultaneous charges and a maximum power of 22kW that uses 100% renewable energy from a photovoltaic installation.
The climate simulator represents a remarkable example given its high energy consumption. This is because it is a unique infrastructure based on sensorics and IoT (Internet of Things) technologies that allows the simultaneous recreation of different climates and climate stress experiments with different types of plants and vegetables.
The nearby homes that participate in the community have been selected according to their consumption profile, seeking different casuistry and representative of the different consumption habits and profiles.
The infrastructure is currently being applied as a pilot case in different research projects in the field of renewable and distributed energy generation technologies, as well as storage solutions, projects in which technologies such as blockchain and artificial intelligence are applied to respond to concepts and practices such as electrical flexibility or demand response programs in different regional, national and European projects(Glocalflex, DR-Rise, Ruralities, Guardians). In order to explain in a graphic way CTIC’s experience in setting up a self-consumption energy community, the Technology Center has created the guide“Generate your own energy – Guide for collective self-consumption in rural areas” where you will find the most important steps to follow when undertaking an electricity generation project, some of the technological alternatives available and the legal requirements that must be met. It also offers references to specialized resources for those who want to learn more about the aspects covered.
