UK Power Networks sets out how it will evaluate flexible alternatives

UK Power Networks has published its first ever Distribution Network Options Assessment report, which outlines where and when it would like to secure additional electrical capacity in the next five years.

In May the company launched the UK’s first ever independent Distribution System Operator (DSO) as an alternative to the established Distribution Network Operator or DNO model. This shifts the emphasis onto managing demand for new capacity rather than simply building new capacity.

Supporting its commitment to a transparent ‘flexibility first’ approach, the new report showcases the options being considered from reinforcing the existing electricity network, to offering flexibility options – and making recommendations for the lowest-cost investment option for customers. It also sets out the methodology for how UK Power Networks’ DSO selects areas where flexible capacity will be required in future.

As more people opt for low-carbon, electric alternatives, the demand on the electricity network continues to rise and is forecast to double by 2050. ‘Flexibility’ is a rapidly emerging marketplace that can offer network companies a cost-effective additional capacity on the network at peak times as an alternative to the traditional method of building new infrastructure.

The report, says UK Power Networks, is the first time that this process and the outcome have been published, providing full transparency to customers, while offering accurate and detailed information on upcoming opportunities for flexibility market participants.

UK Power Networks says this will make it easier for flexibility providers, local authorities, and policy makers to prepare for the rise in low-carbon technologies like electric vehicle chargers and heat pumps and help shape their development plans towards Net Zero.

Sotiris Georgiopoulos, director of the Distribution System Operator at UK Power Networks said, “Transparency is key to building trust in our marketplace, and this document is part of our commitment to be demonstrate transparent and clear decision-making. It sets out very clearly how we evaluate traditional network options against flexible alternatives, where there are opportunities for new capacity on the network and what decisions we will make to ensure we continue to deliver a fit-for-purpose network for the energy transition to Net Zero, at lowest cost for our customers.”