UKPN launches largest flexibility tender

UK Power Networks (UKPN) is seeking 500MW of capacity in its biggest flexibility tender to date.

The distribution network operator is seeking participants with at least 10KW of flexibility in constrained areas to pre-qualify for the tender on the Piclo platform by the end of January. UKPN said the earliest contracts would be delivered from next summer and that the tender could stretch to the winter of 2025 or 2026, depending on the specific flex zones.

The tender document says UKPN is seeking up to 400MW for what it calls ‘demand turn-up’, such as storage that can absorb energy or generation that can turn down. The demand reduction side of the tender would see firm and non-firm contracts offered for more than 150MW of flexible capacity across 1,000 locations.

UKPN says it expects to pay up to £850 per megawatt hour (MWh) for demand turn up and up to £600/MWh for demand reduction.

Sotiris Georgiopoulos, head of smart grid development at UKPN said: “This is a critical time for all energy networks. We need to accommodate more electric vehicles and heat pumps, along with the continued growth of solar and wind generation. We have been using flexibility since 2017 to accommodate growth in demand for electricity, but for the first time we will also use it to help more renewables connect and generate electricity, something no other operator has done at the scale we’re proposing.

“This is a key part of our wider plans to support the transition to net zero at lowest cost. Our latest business plan excluded more than £400 million of network investment on the basis that we plan to manage many parts of our network more cost-effectively using flexibility. These are real savings which are being passed on directly to bill payers”