Britain Flexible Power Market System to Launch Earlier than Planned

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Britain Flexible Power Market System to Launch Earlier than Planned

The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) has announced the award of operating rights for the Flexibility Market Asset Registration (FMAR) system to Elexon and said it expects the system to be operational in 2027, a year earlier than initially planned. The system “is expected to accelerate the number of flexible tariffs for consumers […]

The system “is expected to accelerate the number of flexible tariffs for consumers that can bring down bills”, Ofgem said in an online statement.

“A flexibility market in energy helps balance electricity supply and demand by allowing people to adjust their usage based on grid needs, making the system more stable and efficient”, Ofgem explained. “For example, it can ensure that an electric vehicle (EV) that’s plugged in starts charging when there’s plenty of renewable energy available (such as when it’s a windy night), helping balance the grid and charging with cleaner, cheaper energy.

“These assets, however, need to be registered to a flexibility market. The FMAR system will streamline the registration process for aggregators – which groups together smaller assets like solar panel, EV chargers and home battery storage systems, enabling them to join more than 20 flexible energy markets with a single registration.

“In practice, this means the introduction of a one-stop-shop to register flexible assets, providing users with flexible energy quickly and eliminating the complexity of the myriad platforms and processes currently in use”.

Aggregators need to register only once with their network operator, a local distribution system operator or the National Electricity System Operator.

“Flexible power is an essential component of managing to meet increased demand while managing less predictable supplies from renewable generation, and it has been estimated, that flexible energy use can save between £30-70 billion [$38.83 billion-$90.61 billion] on system costs in the period 2020 to 2050, which means lower bills for all consumers”, Ofgem said.

“Flexing usage in our energy system is critical to lower bills and reduce emissions”, commented Marzia Zafar, deputy director of digitalization and innovation at Ofgem. “By removing barriers for aggregators to register assets, we’re increasing the pace at which flexible tariffs can be offered to consumers.

“Whether you’re charging a car, using solar panels, or simply just putting on a dishwasher, doing so at a time that can help balance the grid and take advantage of renewables will cut costs and lead the country to a more stable energy system that doesn’t rely on volatile international gas markets”.

Elexon will now engage with stakeholders including aggregators to design the requirements and capabilities of the information technology system for FMAR.

Ofgem last year appointed the London-based company as market facilitator for local energy flexibility.

“It will act as a single, expert entity that will work closely with Ofgem, the ESO (Electricity System Operator), ENA (Energy Networks Association), local networks, and Flexibility Service Providers (FSPs) to drive alignment between local and national flexibility markets and remove any barriers”, Ofgem said July 29, 2024.

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