Trieste is about to enter a new era of energy, making a concrete contribution to the Energy Transition. The Smart Grid project presented by AcegasApsAmga, a multi-utility in the area that is part of the Hera Group, was financed under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP).
The Smart Grid project envisages the upgrading of Trieste's power grid and the creation of new systems aimed both at powering Trieste's port terminals, allowing ships moored there to switch off their engines, and responding to the city's evolving electricity needs resulting from the increase in full-electric homes, public and private electric vehicles and the production of energy from renewable sources on the roofs of homes and businesses.
The benefits for the city
The Smart Grid project will make a huge contribution to decarbonisation, resulting in improved air quality and reduced noise pollution in Trieste. Increasing the possibility of producing and consuming electricity for each person means less CO₂ in the atmosphere and less noise pollution thanks to the support of electric mobility for ships, cars and buses. The project also responds to the public’s growing demand for flexibility in consumption, who thus transition from simple consumers to producers of electricity from renewable sources.
The project timeline envisages the launch of the Smart Grid by June 2026, with the first results being seen at the end of 2024.
The characteristics of the project
The project developed by AcegasApsAmga is aimed at implementing extraordinary measures to encourage the reduction of CO₂ emissions, enabling the increase in electrification of final consumption and increasing the so-called hosting capacity, i.e. the capacity of Trieste's power grid to receive and manage energy from renewable sources.
The proposed actions aim to ensure a solid foundation for developing port-related initiatives (such as shore-side power supply for ships, advanced port terminals, construction of renewable energy production installations) and their integration with the needs of the urban fabric. All this in coordination with the developments envisaged in Terna's strategic plan to reinforce the high-voltage power grid in the Trieste area.
Smart means intelligent: solutions with automated calculations and innovative software will therefore be adopted to ensure the full effectiveness and optimisation of the planned construction, adaptation and upgrading of physical network assets. AcegasApsAmga's planning is based on three axes: advanced network planning based on modelling, the digitisation of assets and the physical reinforcement of the grid in a logic of investment optimisation.
The planning of the grid will be supported by university consultants, building on past work done with Milan Polytechnic and the University of Trieste, using calculation software to forecast the grid’s operation and critical points.
The digitisation of the assets consists mainly of the creation of a digital twin at the remote control centre and software modules to process network operating parameters in real time. This solution enables flexibility paradigms for resolving network congestion and voltage violations on the one hand, and on the other advanced network voltage management, contributing to an increase in hosting capacity.
Finally, the physical reinforcement of the assets will consist in the construction of a new primary substation in Roiano and the renovation of 20 secondary substations, the laying of new medium-voltage lines and the renewal of automations. This will limit the need for operators to go out for urgent repairs, optimising the grid’s operation. It is also planned to replace transformers in accordance with the new needs related to the electrification of consumption and the increase in renewable energy installations.