Demand-side flexibility means empowering consumers and reduced costs
Regulators’ 2015 priorities? Competition, DSOs and Customers
CEER’s12015 annual conference today addressed one of the big issues for 2015: energy market flexibility and demand response.
This packed CEER event brought together policy makers, regulators and companies to address the challenges and innovative approaches to flexibility at (1) wholesale (2) network and (3) consumer levels.
Opening the CEER 2015 conference, EU Commissioner for Climate Action & Energy, Miguel Arias Cañete welcomed CEER’s initiative:
“The Commission shares CEER’s aim of unlocking the untapped potential of energy market flexibility and demand response to the benefit of the whole European economy. Activating demand-side participation is important. This will require, amongst other things, the right incentive framework and proper access to information for consumers. We will make all necessary efforts to make it work properly.”
Conference highlights include:
High level panel discussion (which included MEP Buzek and Mr Borchardt, DG ENER) on maximising the potential of flexibility services
International Energy Agency (IEA) presentation on pricing flexibility
Presentations by OPower (a leading seller of energy efficiency software) and Energy Pool (an aggregator) on how they have successfully unlocked consumers’ contribution to flexibility.
Demand-side flexibility means empowering consumers and reduced costs CEER is at the forefront of developing competitive retail markets in which consumers can engage and exert their power of choice. CEER’s efforts to help consumers be able to change their electricity usage from their normal consumption pattern in response to market signals (so called “demand-side flexibility”) began with CEER’s 2014 advice on demand-side flexibility2.
Lord Mogg, CEER President, explained why a major focus of CEER’s work is developing competitive retail markets in which consumers can engage.
“Demand-side flexibility, if enabled, has the potential to bring significant benefits to consumers, both in terms of controlling their energy use and bills, and in terms of the avoided cost of generation and network investments which is inevitably passed through to consumers.”
Unlocking the value of demand-side flexibility also requires examining the role of Distribution System Operators (DSOs) in an evolving market. Regulators have initiated a strategic debate on this issue in our ongoing public consultation on the future role of the DSO (deadline 27 February).
Regulators’ 2015 Priorities? Competition, DSOs and Customers The CEER 2015 Work Programme3 places flexibility, well-functioning retail markets, delivering actual competition in practice, Distribution System Operators (DSOs) and empowering consumers as core elements of CEER’s work this year.
Ends
Notes for Editors:
The Council of European Energy Regulatory (CEER) is the voice of Europe’s national energy regulators. Its members and observers, from 33 European countries, are the independent statutory bodies responsible for energy regulation at national level. Visit www.ceer.eu.
The CEER Advice on Ensuring Regulatory and Market Arrangements help deliver Demand-Side Flexibility is the result of a public consultation. This “Flexibility Paper” firstly defines demand-side flexibility (DSF) and outlines potential benefits throughout the energy system. CEER’s definition of demand-side flexibility (DSF) is the ability for end-use consumers to change (increase or decrease) their electricity usage from their normal / current consumption pattern in response to market signals (for example, in time of use electricity tariffs or incentive payments) or through the consumers’ bid (alone, or via aggregation) to sell their flexibility on energy markets. Such demand-side flexibility has a value and so can potentially be traded between parties as an alternative to investing in new generation or network reinforcement (i.e. DSF value for network purposes). DSF also has value for market purposes (e.g. as a flexible tool for balancing, or for ensuring adequate generation capacity) and complements, and potentially increases, energy efficiency measures.
The CEER 2015 Work Programme includes 15 deliverables across four main areas: - Consumers and retail markets: Consumers continue to be a priority in 2015. We are enhancing our commitment to putting consumers at the heart of EU energy policy with a specific focus on defining what characterises well-functioning retail markets and what can be done to deliver actual competition in practice. - The role of Distribution System Operators (DSOs): Our current public consultation on the future role of the DSOs will be the point of departure for further developing our thinking on the DSOs. Comments to the DSO consultation paper are welcome by 27 February 2015. - New legislative/policy developments: We are committed to serving as a valued partner for the EU Institutions in their shaping of EU energy policy and legislative proposals. - International relations: Our international activities are focused on where CEER can add value beyond that which can be achieved through the efforts of individual NRAs. Our work contributes to extending the EU’s energy acquis beyond the EU’s borders, to energy security and the exchange of best regulatory practice. Strengthening CEER cooperation at global level will continue to be a priority as the European Commission’s concept of a European “Energy Union” is defined and takes shape.
CEER is a member of the International Confederation of Energy Regulators (ICER). ICER has set a 20% female speaker target for its members’ main events from 2015. Why? Because women are under-represented in the energy sector, at management level and on the conference platform. CEER has taken up this challenge. CEER reached the ICER female speaker target with 23% female speakers (5/21 speakers were female) at the CEER 2015 Annual Conference. See http://bit.ly/ICERWomenInEnergy.
Council of European Energy Regulators (CEER) www.ceer.eu
