MHHS process faces delays following concerns from suppliers

Energy retailers have raised concerns about their ability to participate in Market-wide Half-Hourly Settlement (MHHS) and have requested the design phase be pushed back by several months.

The MHHS Programme (MHHSP), a separate business unit within Balancing and Settlement Code (BSC) administrator Elexon, told Utility Week that two change requests have been raised to amend the delivery approach for completing the design phase of the programme, which was due to finish at the end of April.

Both of these proposals, MHHSP said, seek to allow for increased opportunities for more input from energy suppliers.

The first change request by MHHSP was raised following a consultation with a number of suppliers. It seeks to move the completion of the design phase of the programme to 29 July.

“This allows a number of suppliers more time to review the design documentation before baselining the design at the end of July,” MHHSP said.

Corona Energy raised the second change request on behalf of several suppliers, proposing that the end of the design phase is delayed until the end of November 2022.

This second request says that full supplier engagement is currently difficult in light of the unprecedented demands placed upon them by various factors which are outlined in their change request.

A spokesperson for the MHHSP told Utility Week that it is confident that the design will be robust as it has had “some supplier engagement” but, they added, it recognises that allowing more time for greater engagement by suppliers will “increase further confidence in the design”.

While both parties are understood to have each stated that they do not believe the proposed movement of the design milestone would need to impact on the end date for implementation of MHHS, the spokesperson for MHHSP said the request by suppliers will have an impact on overall delivery.

“Regarding the change request raised by suppliers, we believe that will have a greater impact on the ability to deliver the programme to time and cost for a marginal increase in confidence compared to the first change request,” they added.

MHHSP has requested industry views and evidence of the impact of the two requests by 25 March so that the Programme Steering Group and the programme’s senior responsible owner Elexon can make a recommendation to Ofgem for a decision on 6 April.

In line with the MHHS governance arrangements, the regulator will decide on whether the design baseline timescale will be amended.