Flexibility Services Contract Register
Introduction
The purpose of the Flexibility Services Contract Register is to provide a summary of Flexibility Service Procurement. The document particularly focuses on summarising the requirements and showing successful contracts. This document was updated in format September 2024 to better present short term bidding procurement in a clearer way.
Each tab includes specific information:
Version HistoryThe version history was added in September 2024 and provides a high level overview of the updated data with each iteration.
Overarching AgreementsThis lists all awarded Overarching Agreements by provider and includes the Standard ENA Flexibility Service Agreement the contract is based on and the signed date. The current latest version is V3.0 and can be found on the ENA website: https://www.energynetworks.org/publications/standard-agreement-for-flexibility-services-ver-3.0
Call Off Bidding RequirementsAll requirements we have tried to procure as a 'Bidding Round' are listed. This is a high level summary, including a link to the detailed requirements. In cases where there are multiple requirements for different years and seasons but for the same location in one bidding round, this is listed as one row. The complete information set can be found in the provided link. From August 2024, these can be found in the ElectronConnect Market Platform when there is active bidding rounds. These are replicated on our website for transparency.
Call Off ContractsA list of all accepted bids, these are all areas that were identified in the 'Call Off Bidding Requirements' tab. For each procurement round, any bids accepted are summarised such that one entry is shown for multiple bids where the CMZ Name; Asset Name; Flexibility Provider and year are all the same. This can occur where there are requirements for the same location in the same year but for different seasons or different times of day within the same season.
Bilateral TendersBilateral Tenders were used as the main way of procuring Flexibility Services until September 2023, where the process was moved to Overarching Agreements. This tab contains Flexibility Service Requirements that were attempted to procure using this contracting approach. Like the Call Off Bidding Requirements, this is a high level summary of the requirements.
This approach is used to extend contracts awarded through this method or where there is a bespoke need that would make an Overarching Agreement inappropriate.
Bilateral ContractsThe Bilateral Contracts tab lists all the awarded and signed contracts that meet the requirements outlined in the 'Bilateral Tenders' tab.
Bilateral Contracts have previously included multiple Flexibility Service products. Where these are included, the individual prices are included in Columns I to O. 'N/A' indicated the service in this column was not included in the contract or the Availability Payment does not form part of the payment structure.
Terminology
The document assumes an understanding of key terminology. These are briefly explained in this document to aid readability. Please refer to the Flexibility Service website to gain a greater understanding of these aspects.
https://www.ssen.co.uk/about-ssen/dso/flexibility/
Bilateral ContractA bilateral contract is a specific contract signed between SSE and the FSP (Flexibility Service Provider). Each bilateral contract is limited to a particular bid and a new one must be signed for each call off bid. A bilateral contract can also have specific assets tied to it. SSEN have moved away from these types of procurement contracts to Overarching Agreements for delivery of flexibility services.
Call Off ContractA call off contract is the acceptance of a sucessful bid as a result of a bidding round. It is awarded to the FSP once the round has closed and bidding has been assessed for specific zone(s) based on volume and price.
Flexibility Service TypeThe Flexibility Service Type refers to the specific flexibility service needed in each bidding round as specified in the bidding requirements. The standardised names of each service type, set by the ENA, were originally; Sustain, Restore, Secure and Dynamic. In 2024, the ENA and DSOs updated the standarised flexibility service definitions to reflect price and utilisation decision timescales.
Further information on the the ENAs Flexibility Service Type alignment and standardisation process can be found here:
https://www.energynetworks.org/assets/images/2023/Aug/on-flexibility-products-alignment-(feb-2024).pdf?1726829404
FSA VersionThe Flexibility Services Standard Agreement (FSA) has been agreed by the ENA and all DSOs to help standardise Flexibility Services and reduce market barriers to entry.
The latest Flexibility Service Standard Agreement can be found here:
https://www.energynetworks.org/assets/images/2023/Aug/ena-open-networks-standard-agreement-for-flexibility-services-ver-3.0-(apr-2024)-updated.pdf?1726830380
Mini-CompetitionA mini-competition is the procurement process requiring FSPs to confirm acceptance of the terms and conditions of the Overarching Agreement. The mini-competition is how FSPs move towards a signed overarching agreement to participate in bidding windows.
Overarching AgreementAn Overarching Agreement is now part of the procurement approach in order to reduce the level of individual contracting required for Flexibility Services. Once an FSP has signed our Overarching Agreement, they are not required to sign a new contract for each bidding round. The Overarching Agreement can last for 8 years and can cover multiple bidding rounds and call off contracts enabling the procurement process to be quicker and more dynamic.
Supporting Documentation
Please refer to our for full details of our long-term and short-term bidding window requirements to support the bidding requirements provided in this contract register.
https://www.ssen.co.uk/about-ssen/dso/flexibility/flexibility-services/flexibility-services-document-library/