Use the real contracted price, include losses and battery wear, reserve capacity for higher-priority duties and define a safe fallback for missing data.
Start with the price that actually applies
The settlement price may differ from a public market chart because contracts include margins, fees and different time bases. The control input must match the commercial model that will be invoiced.
Before implementation, we document the source, timestamps, units and behaviour when a value is late or revised.
Value must exceed the cost of cycling
A charge-and-discharge decision should account for round-trip efficiency, auxiliary demand and the value of battery degradation. A low price alone is not a sufficient trigger.
SoC bounds, reserve requirements and PCS limits remain hard constraints, not optimisation suggestions.
Design the fallback before connecting the API
If market data disappears, the controller must enter a defined mode. Options include a short-lived last valid schedule, neutral operation or local control against connection limits.
Manual override, event logs and a traceable explanation of each decision make commissioning and later operation safer.
Sources and context
Public sources checked on 19 September 2026. The technical steps describe GridCoda’s proposed approach, not a universal procedure for every device.
RELATED SERVICE
Spot-price control
Control of solar, BESS and flexible demand using price signals, operating constraints and live plant state.
Discuss this topicService scope