Demand Flexibility Service 2023 (and beyond!)

Andreg

mmmmikey said:

...Anybody who isn't on a TOU tarriff can make money out of this by switching as much of their usage as possible to the peak 16:00 to 19:00 period on a day in, day out basis and then they can do the opposite on the bonus days, which is hardly in the spirit of the scheme.

This is a significant design failing of the scheme, albeit far less egregious than the in-day-adjustment.  By encouraging regular consumption of electricity during the peak period the scheme will actually increase the number of times that the scheme is required.  I wonder if the scheme designers actually like this aspect as it will allow them to say "We saved X kwh with this scheme", where X is an impressively large number...

However I think without the in-day-adjustment, many more people will be generating only pennies from the scheme and will lose interest in opting in.  It's just not worth the hassle.

MultiFuelBurner

Free standing charge on electricity if you use less than 0.5kwh during 4-7pm

Job done £200 a year up for grabs.

Smart meter customers only.

mmmmikey

MultiFuelBurner said:

Free standing charge on electricity if you use less than 0.5kwh during 4-7pm

Job done £200 a year up for grabs.

Smart meter customers only.

I like the idea:-)

Chrysalis

MattMattMattUK said:

There were some very odd situations, people who could be paid large amounts by switching from consuming a very small amount because they would normally run from battery power, to exporting a small amount from their battery, but their swing could be engineered to be 1,000% even though their export was only 1kWh, but it meant that they got large payments. The system certainly needs greater thought before the next usage, as an idea it makes sense, but the implementation was very flawed. 

The ideal solution is that we move to fully demand based pricing, but I think we are probably 5+ years away from that as so many people seem vehemently against it. 

I agree on the long term on full demand based pricing as it would reward someone for always having their load off peak, whilst this system is designed reality to only reward if you start off using at peak and then gradually shift.

Of course people abused it last year, so I am not surprised if that part is going to be adjusted.

A perfect system would continuously reward for maintaining the usage pattern, which can only be done via a full demand based pricing system.

Chrysalis

MultiFuelBurner said:

Free standing charge on electricity if you use less than 0.5kwh during 4-7pm

Job done £200 a year up for grabs.

Smart meter customers only.

The idea is too sensible to be implemented.

TheElectricCow

I've now watched the webinar hosted on the 7th (now available on the website linked in the first post), if DFS is of particular interest to anyone it's worth a watch, of course the focus is geared more towards industry participants/providers in the scheme rather than direct consumers.


A few notes on some more highlights:

• This year we'll see in day procurement taking place, meaning that the scheme could be activated at 9am/12pm the same day, rather than the day ahead method we saw last year activating the scheme at 2:20pm a day in advance. The goal is to move towards DFS being a real time service which can be used when needed, rather than predicting possible energy supply shortfalls ahead of time.
• The In Day Adjustment is confirmed to be removed, with no replacement, with the reasons cited being to simplify the system and avoid any "perverse incentives" (something brought up multiple times over the webinar)
• Participants (suppliers) will be allowed to choose between running an opt-in or opt-out system for consumers joining the scheme this year. It should be noted that any increased usage during DFS reduction hours will counteract the participant's reward for reduction made, so most suppliers may choose to stick with the opt-in method.
• If volume of people taking part is high there is a possibility of DFS being activated for different participants at different times to stagger the load reduction. The event will still all take place on the same day for everyone, and it'll be on a per-participant basis, so each supplier won't have multiple different start times between their own consumers.
• Where one MPAN joins the scheme from multiple providers (e.g. through an energy supplier and one of the apps) the latest sign up "wins"
• Suppliers will have a requirement to "mitigate potential gaming behaviour" by notifying ESO where this can be identified
• "Increased export" can be considered alongside reduced consumption for DFS rewards, although it's unclear if this is something the energy suppliers will be offering to consumers at this stage
• Much higher participation is expected this year
• Pending approval from Ofgem, the "go live" date for the scheme is 30th October

Finally, attendees of the webinar were directed to a number of documents on the NGESO website to address various queries. I won't cover them all, but one part which stood out was from Communication Principles v4 and feels quite relevant to the behaviour from Eon Next last year, who did an excellent job of providing as little information about joining the scheme as possible and not allowing anyone without marketing communications enabled to take.

Ensure clarity – Be clear who can take part and what they need to do. Requirements

(such as having eligible meter points, amongst other topics) are set out in the DFS Procurement Rules. Please ensure it is clear how to register and de-register as consumers can only participate with one DFS provider at any one time.

Based on the ICO’s published guidelines on electronic direct marketing ESO believe that it is possible for communications with customers telling them about DFS to be written in such a way that they are “service messages” which can be sent to all customers, and not marketing messages which could not be sent to customers who had opted out of marketing. [...]

The ICO’s guidance places emphasis on service messages being worded “neutrally”.

ESO believe it could therefore be acceptable for DFS providers to provide their customers with factual information, using neutral wording, about the DFS, including details of what it is and its purpose (including details of why the scheme has been devised), and information about how customers can take advantage of the scheme if they wish.

mmmmikey

A very helpful summary, many thanks :-)

vic_sf49

Thanks @TheElectricCow.

I'd downloaded some pdfs from the website yesterday, but hadn't read them yet....because... 

# if I procrastinated for long enough, someone would come along with info about whether the in day adjustment was going to be scrapped or not #

Phew. Saves me making my brain hurt. 

The_Hawk

I've had a look through last year's sessions.

When I wasn't around to take advantage of the 3 hour 'In Day Adjustment' period, my average saving was less than 50p.

When I was around to take advantage of the 3 hour 'In Day Adjustment' period, my average saving was around £5.

My conclusion is, that for me, it is just not worth the effort without the 'In Day Adjustment'. For that reason I am out.

matt_drummer

The_Hawk said:

My conclusion is, that for me, it is just not worth the effort without the 'In Day Adjustment'. For that reason I am out.

As it will be for many people I suspect.