Turning energy flexibility into value for greenhouse growers
Source: VFD.com
The partnership combines Priva's expertise in greenhouse energy optimization with Skye's energy market capabilities to help growers reduce energy costs, unlock new revenue opportunities, and optimize their use of energy assets, while keeping cultivation goals at the center. Energy flexibility in greenhouse operations Volatile energy prices, electrification and growing constraints on the electricity grid create both challenges and opportunities for greenhouse growers.
© Priva BV Combining greenhouse and energy market expertise Priva has extensive knowledge of greenhouse climate control and energy management, as well as the data and intelligence necessary to optimize energy use. This enables growers to reduce energy costs through smarter energy consumption; Create additional revenue opportunities by using available capacity in energy markets; Run existing assets, including lighting, CHP, heating systems and thermal storage smarter to save cost; and align energy decisions with cultivation needs and supporting operational reliability.
In a world where energy prices and markets are becoming increasingly dynamic and complex, combining Priva's greenhouse expertise with Skye's energy-market capabilities helps our customers turn that complexity into new value, while ensuring crop performance remains central to every decision." © Priva BV Luke Kendall, Managing Director at Priva Energy Solutions "As our energy systems become increasingly renewable and dynamic, the flexibility inside industrial assets is becoming one of the most valuable resource in the market," said Tor Espen Steinvik, Co-founder and CEO of Skye. "But that value only materializes if software can close the gap between the greenhouse assets and the electricity trading system.
Why this matters: For operators, this is a water-management story. The useful signal is that direct substrate measurements can help cut drain loss materially without giving up yield or fruit quality, which is exactly the kind of controllable efficiency gain a facility can build on.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does substrate sensing matter in free-drain strawberry systems?
Because drain percentage tells a grower what already happened, while substrate moisture and EC data show root-zone conditions directly. That makes it easier to cut water loss without guessing.
What is the operator takeaway from this trial?
If the thresholds are understood well enough, growers can reduce drain water materially while protecting yield and fruit quality, which makes sensing an operational tool instead of a reporting tool.
