What is a 'virtual power plant?' Here's why experts are calling it the 'energy system of the future'

Originally posted on The Cool Down

Virtual plants are a more efficient way of providing power to people in multiple areas, as they draw from more power sources than individual grid operators. Rooftop solar has many benefits for both us and the planet — it's environmentally friendly, cheaper than dirty energy sources like coal and fuel, and gives individuals energy independence from the power grid. 

A Virtual Power Plant (VPP) pulls together energy from smaller-scale sources of energy — like rooftop solar, wind turbines, and residential electricity storage batteries — and combines it to create a larger clean energy network that can supply power to customers 24/7, explains Aurora Solar. VPPs use software, which acts like a control room of a traditional power plant, to accomplish this. VPP operators streamline and control the flow of electricity onto the grid, sharing clean power generated in a community or town with other consumers who don't produce their own power. 

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