CEPS disconnected hundreds of Czech solar plants from the grid on Monday due to a system imbalance

Energy transmission system operator CEPS disconnected hundreds of domestic solar power plants from the grid for two hours on Easter Monday. The reason was an imbalance in the electricity system. It was the first time CEPS had used such a measure in live operation. The state-owned company’s spokesperson, Lukáš Hrabal, told CTK. The owners of the disconnected plants are likely to receive compensation, probably amounting to a few million korunas in total.

On Monday, CEPS disconnected power plants with a combined capacity of around 400 megawatts from the grid for roughly two hours. The measure applied specifically to areas served by the ČEZ Distribuce and EG.D distribution networks.

„CEPS decided to activate the curtailment plan after exhausting the operational measures normally available to manage the electricity system, including the use of balancing services. Easter is also a holiday celebrated throughout Europe. It was therefore not possible to obtain support from neighbouring countries either, as all countries except Denmark, Portugal and Slovenia—as in the Czech Republic—had a surplus. From a system management perspective, several factors coincided: balance responsible parties had made inaccurate forecasts of both consumption and solar power generation,“ Hrabal explained.