ACER consults on three proposals on electricity balancing capacity procurement

ACER launches today a public consultation on electricity grid operators’ proposals for a harmonised cross-zonal capacity allocation methodology for procuring electricity balancing capacity.

Electricity grid operators must keep the power system stable or in balance. Allocating cross-zonal capacity to balancing capacity enables the power system to be balanced more efficiently.

ACER received the Transmission System Operators’ (TSOs’) and ENTSO-E’s proposals:

• for the harmonised methodology for cross-zonal capacity allocation for the exchange of balancing capacity or sharing of reserves;
• for the Regional Coordination Centres’ (RCCs') task of regional sizing; and
• for the RCCs’ task of facilitating the procurement of electricity balancing capacity.

These three proposals aim at integrating balancing capacity markets with the use of cross-zonal capacities. The goal is to lower the costs of procuring electricity balancing capacity while ensuring security of supply. This can be archieved by reducing the overall balancing capacity needs and by lowering the procurement cost of that balancing capacity which needs to be procured.

What are the next steps?

• ACER will assess these proposals and decide on all three by July 2023.
• To collect the views of stakeholders, ACER is running a public consultation on the proposals from 13 April to 11 May 2023.
• ACER invites interested stakeholders to a workshop on 19 April 2023.