1. Demand-Response Management for Dependable Power Grids

The national electricity markets in Europe, Asia, and the Americas are evolving towards decentralized structures mainly based on renewable energies, essentially rooted in political decisions to counter the worldwide climate change. The increase of production based on renewable energy implies drastically higher volatility in available electric power. The problem has two challenging facets, namely grid stability, and economy of energy production and consumption. Stability is a priority concern, because reliable energy is a prerequisite for economic use of energy, whether or not renewable. This asks for improved and better coordinated diagnostic and prediction techniques, as well as orchestrated demand-side mechanisms to counter critical grid or market situations. This typically does not save energy per se, it alters the consumption characteristics: peaks are shifted or certain load patterns are avoided. Demand-response mechanisms are event-driven reactions based on, for instance, frequency deviations or end user online pricing. With demand-response, consumption is temporarily reduced or increased, possibly even with reducing the respective customer service levels (e.g. indoor climate). The incentive for customers to participate in such programs is usually of monetary nature. This chapter explains the different types of demand-response, and discusses established and emerging technologies, focusing on mechanisms that operate decentralized, and without collecting information centrally. We compare a set of approaches that take up and combine ideas from communication protocol design, taking a flaw in the current German grid regulations as our prime motivation.