Charge cheap, sell high. A battery energy storage system (BESS) trades automatically on the spot market and uses price spreads between low and high-price phases as a revenue source.
Arbitrage means buying electricity at times with low prices and selling it again at times with high prices. A battery storage system makes this principle physically possible: it charges during low-price phases (night, weekends, high renewable production) and discharges during high-price phases (morning and evening peaks).
Price differences arise from fluctuating demand, variable renewable production, and grid congestion. The more volatile the market, the larger the spreads and the more attractive arbitrage becomes as a revenue source.
Spot Market Access
For direct trading on the day-ahead and intraday market, access via a balancing group is required. NRG Solutions is building its own balancing group and ensures the market connection.
The expansion of solar and wind energy is leading to stronger price fluctuations on the electricity market. On sunny days, prices can drop to zero or even go negative. Just a few hours later, when the sun is gone and demand rises, prices surge upward.
This volatility will increase in the coming years. For battery storage, this means: arbitrage revenues grow with the increasing share of renewable energy. BESS thus becomes both a stabilizing element in the grid and an economic asset at the same time.
Multi-Use as the Key
Arbitrage alone rarely justifies a storage investment. In combination with peak shaving, ancillary services, and self-consumption optimization, a robust business case emerges with multiple revenue streams. The NRG EMS automatically switches between applications.
24/7
Direct Market Participation
BESS trades directly on the spot market and exploits price differences between low and high-price phases. Through a dedicated balancing group, the storage operates as a full market participant.
Auto
Automated Trading Cycles
The energy management system (EMS) analyzes market prices in real time and controls charge and discharge cycles fully automatically. No manual intervention needed, no missed trading windows.
Multi
Additional Revenue Beyond Peak Shaving
Arbitrage is rarely a stand-alone use case. It delivers the greatest impact in combination with peak shaving, ancillary services, or self-consumption optimization. The EMS automatically prioritizes the most economically advantageous deployment.
01
Market Monitoring
The EMS continuously monitors the day-ahead and intraday market. It identifies price patterns, forecasts spreads, and determines optimal time windows for charge and discharge cycles.
02
Charging in Low-Price Phases
During hours with low electricity prices (typically: night, weekends, high solar/wind production), the storage charges with cheap energy from the grid.
03
Discharging in High-Price Phases
When electricity prices rise (typically: morning and evening peaks, low production), the BESS feeds the stored energy back and sells at the higher price.
04
Optimization and Repetition
The EMS optimizes each cycle based on current market data, storage state, and other revenue streams. Multiple cycles per day are possible, depending on price spreads and storage capacity.
Stand-alone Large-Scale Storage
Large battery storage systems (from 1 MWh) can be operated as pure trading assets. All revenue comes from price differences on the spot market and other market products.
Industry with Variable Load Profile
Companies with their own BESS use arbitrage as an additional revenue source. During low-load periods, the storage trades on the market; during load peaks, it prioritizes peak shaving.
Sites with PV Systems
Surplus solar energy is not fed into the grid at low feed-in rates but stored and sold during high-price periods.
Multi-Revenue Strategies
Arbitrage complements peak shaving, ancillary services (balancing energy), and self-consumption optimization. The EMS automatically switches between applications and maximizes overall revenue.
Find all use cases in detail on our use cases page.
Together we evaluate whether the price spreads at your location enable arbitrage revenue.
Mitglied von
Arbitrage becomes economically viable from a capacity of approximately 1 MWh. The larger the storage and the higher the power rating, the more energy can be traded per cycle. The optimal dimensioning depends on the planned multi-use concept. NRG Solutions analyzes your profile and dimensions accordingly.
Spreads on the Swiss spot market vary by season, weather conditions, and grid utilization. On volatile days, they range from 5 to 15 Rp/kWh; in extreme situations, significantly higher. What matters is not a single spread but the sum of all trading cycles over the year.
Spot market prices are not guaranteed. On days with flat price curves, spreads can be low. That is why arbitrage is rarely pursued as the sole business case. In combination with peak shaving and ancillary services, revenues are diversified and risk is reduced.
For direct trading on the spot market, access via a balancing group is required. NRG Solutions is building its own balancing group and handles the market connection. You do not need to manage market registration or trading platforms yourself.
Yes, and that is exactly the recommended approach. A BESS can simultaneously perform arbitrage, ancillary services (balancing energy), peak shaving, and self-consumption optimization. The EMS automatically prioritizes the most economically advantageous application in each time window.
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