National Energy Storage Ancillary Service Policy

Do energy storage systems provide ancillary services?

However, the intermittent nature of renewable energy requires the support of energy storage systems (ESS) to provide ancillary services and save excess energy for use at a later time. ESS policies have been proposed in some countries to support the renewable energy integration and grid stability.

How do ancillary services improve security of electricity supply?

One way of creating these signals is through ancillary services markets that National Grid Electricity System Operator (NGESO) design and operate to further facilitate security of supply. This report considers the scope of ancillary services to address these issues as supplementary or alternative approaches.

Are ancillary services a viable revenue stream for nascent energy storage technologies?

Ancillary services for sustained constraint periods have synergise with requirements for capacity adequacy, providing a potential revenue stream for nascent long-term energy storage technologies, including hydrogen storage.

What are energy storage policies?

These policies are mostly concentrated around battery storage system, which is considered to be the fastest growing energy storage technology due to its efficiency, flexibility and rapidly decreasing cost. ESS policies are primarily found in regions with highly developed economies, that have advanced knowledge and expertise in the sector.

Do ancillary services reduce power output?

For generators benefitting from energy support schemes like the Renewable Obligation (RO) and the CfD, participation in any ancillary service that reduces their metered, active power output comes with an opportunity cost of losing the RO or CfD support for the reduced volume.

Do ancillary services still need to manage thermal constraints?

In self-dispatch scenarios, including those with national (BAU) and zonal pricing, there is still a significant need for ancillary services to manage thermal constraints, with their role increasing as key transmission boundaries, such as the B6, become congested.