West Didsbury Storage

Two auctions are held yearly to disburse capacity contracts 1 and 4 years ahead of delivery for keeping generation capacity ready for response.

Providers are paid an availability payment for being connected. New build generators can apply for a 15-year contract in the T-4 auction while existing generators or those able to reduce demand can apply for a one-year contract in the T-1 auction. To ensure delivery, there are stringent rules to prequalify and meet the various milestones required to participate in the Capacity Market. 

All of Statera’s assets are designed to deliver this reserve service to National Grid.

The Wholesale Market is the primary market for wholesale electricity trading between generators and suppliers. Electricity can be traded from years ahead up to one hour ahead of the delivery. Flexible technologies such as batteries and gas reciprocating engines are mainly targeting short-term trading by providing real-time flexibility to help balance the system. Therefore, they trade mainly in day-ahead to intraday markets.

• Day ahead hourly, half-hourly and intraday auctions

• Within day power markets on the intraday exchange

Providers are awarded an availability payment at different contract durations. Fast responding technologies such as batteries are best suited to provide services in real time.

Dynamic Containment (DC), Dynamic Moderation (DM) and Dynamic Regulation (DR): A new suite of products used by National Grid. It is a fast-acting service (DC for post-fault management and DM&DR for pre-fault) to ensure frequency remains within the statutory range of +/-0.5Hz in the event of sudden demand drop or supply surge on the grid.

Firm Frequency Response (FFR): FFR is a real time continuous frequency balancing service, managing system frequency deviations on a minute-by-minute basis.

This is to respond to events including power station trips, demand surges and intermittent renewable generation. Flexible technologies such as batteries and gas reciprocating engines are well placed to provide real-time flexibility in the BM to help.