Peak Shaving/Energy Arbitrage

MSOs and other communications service providers are exploring the use of energy storage systems to improve energy cost efficiency through a process known as peak shaving. Peak shaving, as the name suggests, calls for service providers and other businesses to switch to stored energy to power equipment and operations during portions of the day when electricity rates are at their highest and then recharge the energy storage mediums when rates are the lowest.

Peak shaving and other energy arbitrage operations have largely been unavailable to communication service providers (CSPs) due to their reliance on lead-acid batteries, a dated and inefficient energy storage technology with limited charge/discharge cycles that largely restrict their usage to standby power operations. Though newer lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) offer superior performance to lead-acid batteries, they are still far from an ideal solution for peak shaving and other energy arbitrage operations.

The recent emergence of hybrid supercapacitors as an alternative to traditional energy storage mediums is opening opportunities for MSOs and other businesses to reduce energy costs through peak shaving. Unlike all-electrochemical energy storage devices, hybrid supercapacitors are well-suited for peak shaving and other energy arbitrage programs. By using hybrid supercapacitor modules to power operations for inside plant, outside plant and cell tower sites during peak electric rate hours on a time-of-use (TOU) plan, CSPs can lower energy costs — significantly in areas where TOU rates are especially favorable.

ATX’s Areca^™ family of energy storage modules are based on hybrid supercapacitor technology, a breakthrough in energy storage that blends the best attributes of lithium batteries and supercapacitors. In addition to providing safe and environmentally friendly backup power capabilities, Areca energy storage modules are optimized to support peak shaving operations without compromising service reliability.