As the flexibility moves towards shorter-term, dynamic procurement, we are updating our market structure to allow for improved user experience.

Our platform now categorises information into two distinct entities: markets and requirements.

What are markets and requirements?

A market represents enduring information - how and where flex is procured. Some examples are:

Product type: E.g. Scheduled utilisation, variable availability & scheduled utilisation
Network location: Where assets are connected on the grid
Dispatch type: Scheduled ahead of delivery or in real-time

A requirement represents dynamic, time-variable information - when and what flex is procured. Examples include:

Bidding window: When offers can be submitted
Service timings: delivery periods, windows and days of the week
Capacity: Required MW and guide pricing.

Market Types

The platform will now support two market types:

Single-Requirement Market : Existing ElectronConnect market structure where requirement data is nested within the market.
Multi-Requirement Market: A new structure where a single market contains multiple, distinct requirements.

Single-Requirement Market

Market with consistent service windows over a set period (longer term markets).

E.g. DSO requires 10MW of flexibility in a given location for 13:00 - 17:00 every Monday-Friday over an entire month.

Market contains one requirement:

Bidding window: 1st April - 10th April
Service period: 1st March - 31st March
Service window: 13:00 - 17:00
Service days: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Required capacity over all service windows: 10MW

Once the final service window in the month is complete, the market expires.

Example of a single-requirement market in the "Market Explorer."

Single-requirement market in ElectronConnect Market Explorer

Multi-Requirement Market

Market with varied capacity or time requirements. Generally shorter-term markets e.g. month or day ahead.

E.g. DSO requires different capacity in a given location every 30 minutes. They want to add requirements indefinitely.

Market contains many requirements. An example of two requirements would be:

Requirement 1

Bidding window: 14th - 15th February
Service period: 1st March
Service window: 13:00 - 13:30
Service days: Sunday
Required capacity: 10MW

Requirement 2

Bidding window: 14th - 15th February
Service period: 1st March
Service window: 13:30 - 14:00
Service days: Sunday
Required capacity: 5MW

The market is open if it contains one or more requirement where bidding is open. There will be many opportunities to bid into the market as more requirements are added.

Example of a multi-requirement market in the "Market Explorer."