Researchers at Washington State University (WSU), in partnership with Avista Utilities and its Energy Innovation Lab, have developed and tested a new electricity trading system. The system aims to help communities lower energy costs and improve grid reliability. It was tested over five days in Spokane’s Catalyst Building and South Landing Eco-District. The simulation showed about 12% energy cost savings for the participating area. The study results were published in the IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications.
The project focused on local electricity trading. It allowed neighborhood participants to share and trade energy from solar panels and batteries. While electricity trading usually happens at the large-scale transmission level, this research applied the concept to the local distribution level. The system coordinates distributed energy resources, such as rooftop solar and community batteries, to optimize energy use and reduce the need for infrastructure upgrades.
John Theisen, the study’s lead author and a PhD candidate at WSU, highlighted the value of coordinated local energy management. He noted that using assets like backup batteries at hospitals or universities can add value by allowing them to join local energy markets. The cloud-based system analyzed real-time energy prices and solar forecasts. This helped asset owners decide when to trade or use grid power…