Episode Details
Back to Episodes
What's Really Holding The Grid Together - Fluence
Episode 1
Published 6 hours ago
Description
The grid is swapping spinning turbines for grid forming inverters, and something is getting lost in the trade. A turbine could always throw 5 times its normal output to clear a fault, for free, using nothing but physics. Inverters can only manage around 1.5 times theirs. So if renewables are going to take over, where does that missing strength come from instead?Ben Braun is Chief Engineer at Fluence, where he's spent his career working on power electronics - from batteries to the grid. In this episode, he breaks down grid forming vs grid following inverters for everyone without an electrical engineering degree.They cover:- Why "grid forming is slower" than grid following - and why that slower response is actually what makes it more stable in a fault.- Why NESO in GB and AEMO in Australia are chasing completely different things from grid forming batteries.- Why grid inertia disappears as spinning turbines retire, and how a sudden burst of power from a battery can fake it.- Why volatile AI training loads are turning data centres into miniature grids of their own, and how batteries are used to stop that volatility ever reaching the wider network.- Why Ben's biggest concern isn't too little fault current on the grid, but too much of it - and why that could force a wave of grid upgrades most people haven't priced inWant to see which grids are paying for inertia and fault current today, or where the next stability tenders are opening? Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst, is built for exactly these questions. Free sign up: https://modoenergy.com/product/ko?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=ben_braun&utm_content=ko_signup📄 Related article: [companion article link]―――――――――――――――⏱ CHAPTERS―――――――――――――――
- 00:00 – Why the Grid Needs More Than Power Flow
- 01:31 – Grid Forming Inverters: Common Misconceptions
- 04:51 – Grid Forming vs Grid Following Speed Explained
- 07:16 – Bathtub Analogy for Grid Forming Batteries
- 11:44 – NESO Stability Pathfinder and Global Grid Forming Numbers
- 14:11 – AEMO's System Strength Charge Explained
- 16:28 – Inertia and Short Circuit Level for Beginners
- 17:10 – Grid Inertia Explained With Lorries and Cyclists
- 21:44 – How Batteries Replicate Grid Inertia
- 23:03 – Fault Current Basics: Fuses and Circuit Breakers
- 26:16 – Fault Current Math and Retiring Turbines
- 28:52 – Voltage Stiffness and System Strength
- 39:07 – Reactive Power Explained With a Circus Tent
- 42:23 – Black Start and Grid Restoration Explained
- 46:57 – Grid Forming Inverters for Data Centres
- 53:30 – Contrarian View: Too Much Fault Current
- 61:18 – Grid Upgrades for High Fault Current Levels