United States
Australia
Posted on: 23/10/2019
SmartestEnergy complete their first trade in the Balancing Mechanism.
Having been issued a Bid Offer Acceptance (BOA) by National Grid at 9:23AM on the 23rd October, the next generation energy company dispatched 37MW into this near real-time market, this dispatch lasted 30 minutes at an accepted offer price of £74/MWh.
With significant investment SmartestEnergy has enhanced its optimisation portfolio with the addition of the Balancing Mechanism (BM). They are one of the very few energy suppliers providing independently-owned generation assets access to this increasingly attractive revenue stream, valuing assets close to real-time.
From the 23rd October, the BM is available for SmartestEnergy customers, including operators of gas peakers and batteries, wind projects for curtailment, and future plans to provide access for even smaller assets and demand response participants.
The mechanism is used by National Grid ESO to balance supply and demand in real-time. It has traditionally been dominated by large centralised power plants but with an increasing need for flexible capacity, the BM is being made more accessible to new market entrants and smaller distributed energy assets. Participants can contribute by submitting bids and offers to increase or decrease their generation or consumption.
Chief Executive Officer, Robert Groves said, “As well as accessing new revenue streams, the move into the BM means our customers will be able to make an important contribution to the UK’s net zero journey.
“Flexibility is key to enabling the growth needed in renewable capacity to help achieve net-zero carbon targets and by taking part in the Balancing Mechanism both generators and consumers can contribute to that as well as taking advantage of a valuable income stream”
“We are proud to become one of the first energy suppliers to enter our aggregated portfolio into the Balancing Mechanism. It’s a highly competitive market but we are confident that SmartestEnergy’s dedicated asset trading resource and access to the latest technology, provided by Origami, will ensure customers are able to make the most of this exciting opportunity”, concludes Robert Groves.
Using technology provided by Origami, SmartestEnergy monitors the availability of its customers flexible assets in real-time and then identifies where to take advantage of commercial opportunities in the wholesale and balancing services markets.
Peter Bance, Chief Executive Officer of Origami said, “Following the latest development iteration of our technology platform, we are delighted to confirm that it now enables access to the Balancing Mechanism. We are pleased to be working with SmartestEnergy at this exciting time in the evolution of the GB energy market. As energy systems evolve and become more volatile and complex, power traders and energy suppliers increasingly need to access all available sources of value – powerful real-time technology is key to unlocking these opportunities”
SmartestEnergy provides power purchase agreements to independent generators and supplies industrial and commercial businesses with certified renewable electricity. The launch into the Balancing Mechanism adds another revenue stream to SmartestEnergy’s Managed Flexibility product, enabling these customers to become more active participants in the energy system.
