Industrial Automation Magazine India

Fluence acquires Advanced Microgrid Solutions artificial intelligence-driven software and digital intelligence platform

Published on : Monday 19-10-2020

New capabilities amplify and extend Fluences energy storage product line, enabling customers to maximise the value of energy storage & renewables while accelerating grid decarbonisation.

Arlington, Va. – October 15, 2020 – Fluence, a Siemens and AES company, has announced it has acquired the digital intelligence platform of AMS, the leading provider of AI-enabled optimised bidding software for utility-scale storage and generation assets. The combination of the two companies’ technologies will help utilities, developers, and commercial and industrial customers optimise energy storage and flexible assets to deliver additional revenue, improve grid reliability and efficiency, and support the global transition to more sustainable and resilient power systems.

AMS’ technology uses artificial intelligence, advanced price forecasting, portfolio optimisation and market bidding to ensure energy storage and flexible generation assets are responding optimally to price signals sent by the market. AMS’ and Fluence’s technologies together will act as a force multiplier, maximising asset value by combining Fluence’s deep experience operating batteries in the field with AMS’ ability to optimise market participation.

The acquisition, which follows a year-long partnership between the two companies, complements and expands upon Fluence’s digital intelligence capabilities, such as market dispatch algorithms, battery degradation modelling and anomaly detection. By joining the Fluence team, AMS will leverage Fluence’s global sales reach to make its software available to more customers around the world.

“Our century-old power system is stressed. Renewable energy and energy storage are the solution,” said Brett Galura, chief technology officer at Fluence. “AMS has developed one of the most powerful AI-enabled software engines available in the industry. This acquisition provides customers with data-driven insights that maximise the value and performance of generation and storage assets to make the entire grid smarter. These innovations will drive the transformation of global electric power systems to ensure a more sustainable future.”

The acquisition allows Fluence to increase the value of energy storage and renewable energy for customers. The combination of Fluence’s sixth generation tech stack, which can reduce balance of system costs for energy storage by up to 25 per cent, with AI-enabled software that can increase revenue from battery energy storage by more than 100 per cent, maximises the RoI of energy storage. AMS’ software has also increased the revenues of standalone renewable assets by over 10 percent via optimised wholesale market bidding.