Energidrica

ITA | ENG

Project
“ENERGIDRICA: efficient energy management for water supply networks" will develop a decision support system for energy efficiency in water supply and distribution networks, generating process innovation according to the principles of energy saving, energy reduction and integration with sustainable energy sources, in three complementary decision-making areas:

1. Urban supply schemes from multiple sources. The project will produce a structured and replicable methodology to energetically rationalize resource rates from each source, respecting needs, resource availability constraints and hydraulic carrier capacity.
2. Management of pumping in the supply and distribution networks. The project will develop methodologies for the analysis of energy inefficiencies and support for the management of plants that integrate advanced management-oriented hydraulic analysis tools, allowing the physically based modelling of network water losses as energy and management efficiency indicators.
3. Development of tools for the integration of sustainable energy sources into a self-consumption logic to feed pumping plants. Different functionalities will be aimed at supporting the creation of sustainable energy recovery plants or at promoting their use in the optimization of pump operations.

Financial Resources
This 30-month project was funded by the NOP Research and Innovation 2014-2020 under Axis II “Thematic Projects”, action “Clusters”, which finances industrial research and experimental development projects in the 12 specialization areas identified by the National Research Programme (NRP) 2015-2020, in particular in the “Energy” specialization area. 
For the implementation of this initiative, a budget of 2,204,722.79 euros was allocated to the following beneficiaries forming the public-private partnership:

• DHITECH Scarl
• Abbanoa SpA;
• Acquedotto Pugliese SpA
• Apphia Srl
• ING Srl
• CRS4 Srl Uninominale - Centre for Research, Development and Advanced Studies
• “G. D’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara
• University of Milano- Bicocca
• CONSORZIO MILANO RICERCHE 

Impact on the Territory
In line with one of the intervention priorities identified in the Energy area of the National Smart Specialization Strategy: “Technologies for improving efficiency in final energy conversions, energy recovery and energy use rationalization”, the project intends to provide a support system for energy management of water supply and distribution networks aimed at reducing energy consumption and CO2 emissions and integrating renewable energy sources (smart grid). This goal will be pursued through a multidisciplinary approach that integrates the necessary skills and knowledge (in the fields of hydraulics, energy and IT) to have a systemic overview of the problem. The standardization of processes by structured, replicable and non-empirical approaches addresses the need to rationalize the large hydraulic infrastructures located in Southern Italian regions, and not only there. In those regions, this will stimulate the installation of monitoring and control devices, promoting both marketing and technological development, which will also have a positive impact on employment.

---

10/07/2023