Internet data centers and industrial parks as flexibility providers in modern power systems: An ADMM-based coordination mechanism

S.A. Mansouri, E. Nematbakhsh, A. Ramos, J.P. Chaves, J. García-González, J.A. Aguado

Applied Energy Vol. 407, pp. 127320

Summary:

Smart prosumers with Distributed Generation (DGs) and controllable loads can provide cost-effective grid services. However, realizing this potential requires distributed optimization mechanisms that ensure market efficiency, participant privacy, and compliance with electricity market regulations. This paper presents a bi-level distributed optimization mechanism to maximize flexibility services from industrial parks and Internet Data Centers (IDCs) in distribution-level Congestion Management (CM) markets. The upper-level models the Distribution System Operator (DSO), which identifies congested lines using linear AC power flow analysis on pre-settled energy market results and sends corrective signals to prosumers. The lower level allows prosumers to adjust their operations accordingly and communicate updated transactions back to the DSO. A novel proxy-driven algorithm is proposed to facilitate service-sharing among geo-distributed IDCs, considering congestion issues. Additionally, an adaptive Alternating Direction Method of Multipliers (ADMM) algorithm enables decentralized coordination among market agents, achieving 74.52 % faster convergence than the standard ADMM. A real-world case study from Spain demonstrates that the proposed mechanism enables the grid operator to maximize grid services from prosumers, reducing congestion alleviation costs by 35.27 %. Moreover, IDCs reduced daily costs by 11.07 % through service-sharing and task-shifting aligned with CM market signals, while industrial parks achieved a 13.68 % cost reduction by aligning material production processes with CM market signals, both enabled by the proposed bi-level mechanism.

Keywords: Industrial parks; Internet data Centers; Congestion management; Distributed optimization; Smart prosumers; Smart grids

JCR-JIF Impact Factor and WoS quartile: 12,200 - Q1 (2025)

DOI reference: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2025.127320

Published on paper: March 2026.

Published on-line: January 2026.

Citation:
S.A. Mansouri, E. Nematbakhsh, A. Ramos, J.P. Chaves, J. García-González, J.A. Aguado, "Internet data centers and industrial parks as flexibility providers in modern power systems: An ADMM-based coordination mechanism", Applied Energy, Vol. 407, pp. 127320, March 2026. [Online: January 2026] doi: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2025.127320