23rd Apr 2019 08:39
LONDON (Alliance News) - British Gas owner Centrica PLC plans to expand its software business, to cash in on increased demand for more flexible grid systems, the Financial Times reported on Monday.
According to Jorge Pikunic, Centrica's managing director of Distributed Energy & Power, Centrica is looking to expand the segment's operations over the next three years by "almost fivefold".
The group will look to grow the business into a software supplier to other companies, amid plans to increase the amount of renewable energy that currently makes up the UK's electricity supply.
Currently, renewable energy makes up 30% of the UK's total electricity.
The Financial Times noted that electricity supply from traditional power plants were easy to predict, but renewables sources such as wind and solar are more difficult and will need more flexibility from operators.
Centrica is targeting the expansion of revenue from the Distributed Energy & Power segment from GBP209 million in 2018 to GBP1 billion within the next five years. In terms of margins, Pikunic said, Centrica is targeting "over 20%".
"This is a very, very important part of the energy transition. We need flexibility on the grid," Pikunic said. "We can aggregate hundreds of assets to create virtual power plants."
We have experience ahead of others that gave us the opportunity to develop this technology," Pikunic added.
https://www.ft.com/content/38173ff8-6122-11e9-a27a-fdd51850994c
Shares in Centrica were up 0.7% at 106.47 pence on Tuesday morning.
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