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Energy Exemplar’s support for energy transition technologies

Energy systems are inherently complex and flexible, yet they are constrained by technical limitations rooted in the physical properties of energy-related commodities. Several software tools for optimizing energy systems emerged in the late 20th century such as, for example, iOPT from IRM or Message used by IIASA for long-term analysis of energy technologies, were focusing on traditional power production technologies and gas storage and transportation even before a power and gas trading market was established in Europe and the US. While energy businesses have evolved significantly since then, the demand for optimization tools persists, especially with the increasing complexity introduced by energy transition technologies such as renewable production, batteries, and the hydrogen economy.

PLEXOS, an optimization platform for energy modeling, has demonstrated remarkable flexibility, remaining relevant in the market since its founding in 1999. Over the years the business cases resolved with PLEXOS have transitioned from modeling power and gas networks to optimizing joint gas and power systems, power purchase agreements (PPAs), hydrogen value chains, and trading-related scenarios. Energy Exemplar, the company behind the PLEXOS platform, has experienced robust growth, exceeding 30% year-over-year. The company has a robust customer base among network operators in Europe and North America, but the growth can be attributed to the company’s response to new market requirements and providing solutions for such stakeholders as independent power producers (IPPs), investors in renewable energy, heavy industry, communities and large consultancies analyzing the future development of energy markets. The primary drivers of the growth are solutions around gas and power co-optimization, encompassing also the hydrogen production, storage and transport as well as the trading solution.

PLEXOS empowers traders with advanced analytical tools and fully calibrated fundamental models providing ready datasets for most European markets and an in-house market data platform. Users can access daily updated results through a dashboard or APIs, covering interconnected markets across Central and Western Europe. The models empower traders to comprehend market fundamentals and calculate price scenarios through market analysis based on various influencing variables such as weather, supply shocks, market interconnections, correlations etc.

The modeling of the hydrogen value chain is a prominent topic in the realm of energy transition technologies. The models for hydrogen production, storage, and transport are based on European datasets. Energy Exemplar’s research and modeling work enables users to run ready-to-use models for Europe, incorporating publicly sourced data and assumptions about capacities, traces, and capital and operating costs for renewable energy assets. These datasets facilitate gas and power co-optimization, and incorporate carbon market and hydrogen-related data, enabling the calculation of market development scenarios for both the short and long term. The models also allow for the examination of power, gas, and hydrogen coupling, including demand and supply scenarios, suggesting the most effective ways to integrate gas, power, and hydrogen systems, indicating most effective investments like transportation buildup, new capacity installation, power and hydrogen storage.  The recent acquisition by Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners positions the company for accelerated growth.

 

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