Ofgem announces £5.8mn for network utilisation and flexibility projects

Ofgem’s Strategic and Innovation Fund (SIF), now moving into round three, has announced £5.8 million ($7.4 million) to fund feasibility studies for 44 projects looking into electricity network utilisation, system flexibility and novel approaches to net zero.

The 44 projects, selected from 53 that were submitted for round three of the fund, will be led by energy network companies in partnership with innovators and partner organisations.

Priority challenges for eligibility included:

• Whole system planning and utilisation of networks, to facilitate faster and cheaper network transformation and asset rollout;
• Novel technical, process and market approaches to deliver an equitable and secure net zero power system;
• Unlocking energy system flexibility to accelerate the electrification of heat;
• Enabling power-to-gas (P2G) to provide system flexibility and energy network optimisation.

Project delivery

The SIF, funded by energy regulator Ofgem and delivered by Innovate UK, aims to find potential ideas for energy network challenges and identify those with the greatest promise as quickly as possible.

With their selection into the funding programme, the 44 projects will now enter their initial discovery phase. If successful, they will help customers and the wider electricity sector accelerate their net zero plans, build network resilience, access lower costs and streamline maintenance activities.

In a release, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), which directs research and innovation funding in the UK, lists examples of selected network and flexibility projects:

Equiflex

Led by SP Energy Networks, Equiflex aims to promote equal access to flexibility markets, ensuring a just transition to net zero.

Equiflex project partners, Frazer-Nash Consulting Ltd, Energy Action Scotland and East Ayrshire Council, are looking at the design of flexibility options targeted at specific groups, such as less engaged and more vulnerable consumers.

They are also looking at the development of a toolkit to help stakeholders, such as local authorities, to evaluate which flexibility options might be best for their local context.

B-Linepack+

The B-Linepack+ project, led by National Gas, is exploring the feasibility of using geological solutions as intermediate scale storage.

The national gas transmission system can pack additional gas into the lines, known as linepacking. However, the amount of energy able to be stored by linepacking will decrease as we move toward decarbonisation of the networks with the use of hydrogen.

The project works with partners from the University of Edinburgh, Gravitricity Ltd, Southern Gas Networks, Revolutionary Engineering & Digital Design Ltd and Energy Reform Ltd.

It is looking at how lined rock shafts, engineered rock caverns and underground silos could provide purpose-built storage to supplement linepack capacity and provide system flexibility. This will enable supply and demand to be managed more effectively for consumers.

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UKPN flexibility projects

Additionally, UK Power Networks listed three projects selected for funding, including:

• Electric Thames: exploring the viability of electric-powered boats on the River Thames, and the possibility of boat power feeding the electricity grid to increase energy flexibility and reduce peak electricity demand
• KnowMyFlex: a proposal to create energy flexibility certificates, similar to energy performance certificate (or EPC) ratings, to show the existing and future flexibility potential of homes and buildings, helping customers engage with flexibility to reduce their bills
• WASH: an advanced study into the ways heat can be efficiently captured from wastewater and used to help district heat networks decarbonise

Luca Grella, head of innovation at UK Power Networks, said: “We’ve made remarkable strides during our first year with the SIF programme and are excited to be heading into a second with a new wave of projects which have exciting potential to make a real impact on both our communities and the way we work.

“This funding is allowing us to continue building strong bonds with some of the brightest minds in the sector. Our project collaborators play a key role in helping us deliver tangible benefits for our customers, and we can’t wait to reap the rewards of these partnerships.”

Launched in 2021, the UK‘s SIF fund is expected to invest £450 million ($577 million) by 2026.