As countries work toward Net Zero, more renewable power, like wind and solar, is being added to the grid. Because weather is unpredictable, the amount of electricity these sources generate can change quickly and isn't always available when it's needed. To keep electricity safe and reliable, regional Grid Operators monitor and control the grid's frequency. Their job is to keep that frequency stable. If it falls too low, there isn't enough energy flowing to power devices, which in extreme circumstances can trigger blackouts. To manage this balance in real time, Grid Operators run a market where battery owners can get paid to help. When they need to adjust the grid's frequency, they send automatic signals to participating batteries to trigger them to either charge or discharge energy. This market is sometimes called Balancing or Frequency Regulation. Grid Rewards is the payment battery owners receive for providing this fast acting, stabilising service to the grid.

The Frequency Bidding Market Grid Rewards connects your Emaldo battery to a special market run by the Grid Operator. This market is only open to approved companies and battery systems that can react quickly and reliably. The Grid Operator runs the market in 1-hour slots throughout the day (e.g. 07:00–08:00, 08:00–09:00, etc). For each slot, companies can bid to provide: · Up service – used when grid frequency is too low and your battery discharges energy into the grid. · Down service – used when grid frequency is too high and your battery charges, absorbing excess energy from the grid. Two phases: Capacity and Activation The bidding process has two phases: Capacity (Standby) o Emaldo bids on your behalf to offer your battery for Up and/or Down services in a chosen time slot. If the bid is accepted, your battery is put on standby for that hour. § The Grid Operator usually accepts more capacity than it expects to use, just in case, which means you may have a bid accepted for a specific 1-hour time slot but never actually be activated to charge or discharge. Activation (Actual response) o If the Grid Operator needs help balancing the grid in that hour, it sends an activation signal. o Your battery then quickly charges or discharges to stabilise the grid. An activation can happen any time within the 1-hour slot and lasts for a maximum of 15–20 minutes. You can continue using your Emaldo system as normal while it is on standby. You earn Grid Rewards in both phases: · For being available (Capacity) · For actually responding (Activation) Preparing your battery (Pre-balancing) If Emaldo has a bid accepted for your battery you'll receive an in-app notification telling you which 1-hour slot your system will be on standby for. This is for information only and you don't need to do anything. To get your system ready in case of an activation, 1-hour before the standby slot begins, your system enters pre-balancing mode. During this time, the Emaldo AI automatically adjusts your battery's level so it has: · Enough energy (for Up / discharge events), and · Enough empty space (for Down / charge events). This ensures your battery is ready if the Grid Operator sends an activation signal. Worked example · Emaldo bids for Up and Down services between 01:00 and 02:00, and the bid is accepted by the Grid Operator. · You receive a notification in the app that your battery will be on standby from 01:00 to 02:00. · At 00:00, your battery enters pre-balancing mode: o It may charge or discharge slightly to make sure it has the right mix of available energy and capacity for any activation between 01:00 and 02:00.

Schedule Mode Schedule Mode lets you directly control when your system charges or discharges. You set the times and behaviour manually in the app and the battery will work according to your settings. In this mode, Emaldo has no control over the battery. AI Mode AI Mode uses Emaldo's intelligent control system to maximise both Grid Rewards earnings and day-to-day energy savings. In this mode Emaldo is controlling the battery to maximise your returns Can both modes participate in Grid Rewards? In short, no, however there is a difference depending on whether you are a new or existing Emaldo customer. While in schedule mode, the battery is following your instructions. Without the ability to control the battery Emaldo cannot offer it to the Grid Operator, so it does not generate Grid Rewards in this mode. When in AI mode and enrolled in Grid Rewards, Emaldo’s AI automatically prepares your battery before balancing sessions, keeps it available for any activation, and manages charging and discharging at other times to reduce your electricity costs. By keeping the battery available for grid balancing you earn Grid Rewards in this mode, even if the battery is not used by the grid operator. New customers must be in AI mode (Guaranteed or Flexible) to generate Grid Rewards. If you are an existing Emaldo customer using schedule mode, alongside earning Grid Rewards at the time the Guaranteed Grid Rewards Plan is released, you will continue to earn Grid Rewards on the Flexible Grid Rewards Plan. If you are currently on schedule mode and signed up for Grid Rewards we recommend staying on this mode. You will continue to receive your payments and a new scheme supporting Grid Rewards while on schedule mode is in development for mid-2026. If you choose to change from Schedule Mode and join AI Mode, you will not be able to reverse your decision and sign-up for Grid Rewards alongside schedule mode.

You can choose how you earn Grid Rewards through one of two plans: Flexible Grid Rewards Plan Flexible Grid Rewards is available to all Emaldo customers, no matter which system or how many batteries you have. In this plan, your earnings follow real market prices set by the Grid Operator. These prices change throughout the day based on supply and demand: · When a lot of batteries are available to provide balancing, prices can drop. · When the grid expects more frequency fluctuations and needs extra support, prices can rise. With the Flexible plan, your earnings vary hour by hour. Some periods may pay very well, while others may pay very little. Your actual earnings depend on your system's capacity, how much capacity is available during balancing events, how many hours you make your system available, your location, and sometimes your electricity supplier. Past payouts do not predict future results. Guarantee Grid Rewards Plan The Guarantee plan is available only for systems with three or more batteries. It offers a fixed, guaranteed monthly payment for three years, shielding you from any drop in market prices and giving full predictability. When you choose this plan, a dedicated portion of your battery's capacity is set aside exclusively for Grid Rewards. You can continue using the remaining capacity for your solar generation, home consumption during high-price periods, and reducing peak charges.

Once your system is fully enrolled and actively supporting the electricity grid, your Grid Rewards earnings are paid monthly, directly into your bank account. Read more: https://help.emaldo.com/hc/en-150/articles/25835742629660-When-will-my-Grid-Rewards-payout-arrive

Your earning potential depends on the plan you choose and how your system is set up. Flexible Grid Rewards Plan If you choose Flexible Grid Rewards, the following factors can increase your earnings: Number of batteries If you have 1 or 2 batteries in your system, then increasing to 3 may increase your earnings. Use the Grid Rewards calculator to estimate earnings potential by adding a 2nd and 3rd battery. Adding more than 3 batteries will not increase your earnings as your inverter, and the power your system can offer the grid, remains the same. Participation hours You can limit when your system participates, but the best results come from allowing participation 24/7. Before each balancing session, your system enters a short pre-balancing phase to ensure enough capacity is available. If activated, your battery will only charge or discharge for around 15–20 minutes. In nearly all cases, the earnings from activation outweigh any small cost differences during that time. Most of the time your system will be on standby only, because Grid Operators often reserve more capacity than they ultimately use. Electricity supplier In some countries, your choice of electricity supplier affects which flexibility services Emaldo can bid for. · Suppliers shown with a green icon support the full range of grid services, giving access to the highest-paying opportunities. · Suppliers shown with an amber icon support fewer services, which may result in lower overall earnings. Peak shaving Peak shaving reduces the demand charges on your Distributor bill by limiting how much power you draw from the grid. If your Power Peak, Fixed Peak, or Flexible Peak settings are too restrictive, your system will hold back capacity and energy for peak shaving instead of grid balancing, reducing your Grid Rewards earnings. For more detail, see the "How does Peak Shaving work?" FAQ. Guarantee Grid Rewards Plan If you're on the Guarantee plan, your monthly earnings are fixed for three years, so no additional action is required. In some countries, your electricity supplier still affects the overall earning level in the background: · Suppliers with a green icon allow Emaldo to bid for all available services, supporting the highest payout levels. · Suppliers with an amber icon allow only a reduced set of services, which lowers the underlying earning potential.

Peak Shaving helps lower the charges you pay to your local Distributor by reducing how much power you draw from the electricity grid during high-usage moments. This feature applies only to customers who receive one bill from their Electricity Supplier and a separate bill from their Distributor. In the app, you can set several levels that control how your system manages power during peak periods: · Power Peak – The maximum grid power (kW) you want to draw at any moment. This target is usually based on your consumption patterns and your Distributor's tariff. · UPS Reserve – A small emergency reserve used only as a last resort. To protect battery health, this must stay above 10%. · Fixed Peak Reserve – Energy locked exclusively for Peak Shaving events. This must be above 10% for Peak Shaving to operate. · Flexible Peak Reserve – Energy available for Grid Rewards and AI / Schedule mode. It will only be used for Peak Shaving if needed. · When Peak Shaving is active – You choose the hours based on your tariff structure and when you are most likely to exceed your Power Peak level. How your system reacts during a Peak Shaving event When your system detects that grid usage has reached your Power Peak limit, it responds in this order: Reduce or pause battery charging Reduce EV charging (Power Core systems only) Discharge the battery to lower your grid demand If these steps are not enough to bring usage below your Power Peak, you will receive a notification suggesting you reduce consumption. Peak Shaving and Grid Rewards Grid Operator rules allow up to 80% of your inverter's capacity to be used for Grid Rewards, and as an activation lasts for a maximum of 20 minutes, we therefore require 33% of that number in either space or energy dependent upon the service we are bidding for. This will come from the amount you make available in the Flexible Peak Reserve. If you set your Power Peak and Flexible Peak Reserve levels too low, your available capacity for Grid Rewards is reduced, lowering your earnings. During Grid Rewards events, your Power Peak limit takes priority. During pre-balancing and activation, the system will charge or discharge as needed, but if doing so risks exceeding your Power Peak, it will automatically limit this activity to stay within your selected threshold. Worked example 1 System: 10.8 kW inverter with 3 × 5.12 kWh batteries Settings: Power Peak 9 kW, UPS 10%, Fixed Peak 10–50%, Flexible Peak 50–100% (active 24/7) · UPS Reserve: 1.536 kWh · Fixed Peak: 6.144 kWh · Flexible Peak: 7.698 kWh You have maximised your earning potential because the total possible power (kW) we could bid with your unit is 8.64 kW (calculated as 80% of 10.8 kW) and you have set your Power Peak above that, at 9 kW. This is the same with the energy levels, as the Flexible Peak allows us to use up to 7.698 kWh, and the maximum we will use is 5.70 kWh (calculated as 33% of the 8.64 kW capacity x 2 for both Up and Down services. Worked example 2 System: 10.8 kW inverter with 3 × 5.12 kWh batteries Settings: Power Peak 6 kW, UPS 10%, Fixed Peak 10–50%, Flexible Peak 50–100% (active 24/7) · UPS Reserve: 1.536 kWh · Fixed Peak: 6.144 kWh · Flexible Peak: 7.698 kWh You have limited your earnings potential because the total possible power (kW) we could bid with your unit is 8.64 kW (calculated as 80% of 10.8 kW) and you have set your Power Peak below that, at 6 kW. Therefore, the total power available for Grid Rewards is 6 kW, meaning we require 3.96 kWh of energy / space in your batteries (calculated as 33% of the 6 kW capacity x 2 for both Up and Down services). In this example, your earnings are reduced by approximately 31% due to the lower Power Peak level. Flexible Grid Rewards Plan You can freely adjust Power Peak, Fixed Peak, Flexible Peak and the hours when Peak Shaving is active, according to your preferences and Distributor tariffs. Guarantee Grid Rewards Plan To ensure enough capacity is available to meet the Guaranteed payouts, the minimum Power Peak level you can set is 6 kW.

Flexible Yes. You can leave the Flexible Grid Rewards plan at any time, and the change will take effect within three days. Guarantee You can request to terminate the Guaranteed Grid Rewards plan after an initial period of 3 months. Once you request termination, the process takes three months to complete. After that, you can either rejoin the Guaranteed Grid Rewards plan at the rate available at that time, or switch to the Flexible plan and earn based on market prices.