National Grid’s Distribution System Operator (DSO) has secured its biggest long term flexibility portfolio to date, awarding 196GWh of flexibility availability in the latest annual tender.
The portfolio represents a tenfold increase on the previous year, with the results revealing “rapidly growing market participation and the strengthening role of low‑carbon technologies in enabling a cleaner, more cost‑efficient energy system”, it said.
The 2025 tender round, which closed in November, introduced wider availability windows and more service hours, expanding opportunities for providers with more than 4.5 million customers located in flexibility zones.
Alongside the long-term procurement, substantial opportunities remain available in the short-term market, which is currently transitioning from a week-ahead to a day-ahead market.
The new demand turnup service, FlexUp, saw strong engagement, with 52GWh awarded across 23 high voltage zones. As the first DSO to trial this type of service, National Grid DSO is using a new flexibility use case that reduces renewable curtailment by shifting demand into periods of high renewable generation.
Natrional Grid DSO said that FlexUp ”helps consumers get maximum value from clean energy already on the system and signals how the role of flexibility is evolving” and the procurement round ”sets a new benchmark in scale, accessibility and innovation”.
Cathy McClay, Managing Director of National Grid DSO, said:
“This year’s results show real momentum behind flexibility as a smarter, more efficient way to operate the electricity network and ultimately drive down costs for consumers.
“We’re delighted to have delivered our largest long-term tender yet and to see such a positive response to our new Flex Up service. It’s a strong foundation as we continue to expand and evolve our local flexibility markets.”
Image courtesy of Shutterstock
