Demand flexibility service to help prevent blackouts

Ofgem has given the green light to National Grid ESO’s (Electricity System Operator) Demand Flexibility Service (DFS), which means the scheme is now live and ready for consumers to start using.

The Demand Flexibility Service (DFS) has been developed to allow the ESO to access additional flexibility when the national demand is at its highest, during peak winter days.

The first testing event will see participating households and businesses being paid to turn down non-essential energy usage at times of peak national demand to help balance the electricity grid over the winter period.

The service, expected to prove a critical tool in the ESO’s arsenal to prevent blackouts, will pay households to voluntarily reduce their energy usage at specified times, boosting the country’s energy security by helping to ensure demand never outstrips supply, such as in a situation where the UK is unable to import enough energy from the continent.

The Association for Decentralised Energy helped design the DFS alongside National Grid and industry. The trial period of the scheme will run for five months.

Sarah Honan, flexibility policy manager at the ADE, said: “The DFS is an exciting development that puts energy directly in the hands of the user by paying them to safeguard the fate of the grid.

“In this period of huge price volatility, it marks a significant step through which households and businesses across the country can start to take back control of their relationship with energy – their involvement is absolutely critical if the UK is to avoid blackouts and grid interruptions over the course of what is sure to be a difficult winter period. Having a more flexible energy system is hugely valuable, and it’s only right that consumers can financially benefit from playing their part.”