REVEAL

This project will investigate the feasibility of, and develop a proof of concept for, a National Grid Electricity System Operator (ESO) hosted, digitally ringfenced, balancing and constraint market which enables the ESO (supported by groups of energy sector service providers) to act autonomously in building innovative concepts, services and solutions to accelerate the ESO’s Markets Roadmap and drive to net zero.

Benefits

With the move from traditional sources of generation towards new technology types and the need for new sources of flexibility as we transition to a zero carbon electricity system, it is more important than ever to accelerate the rate at which new products can participate in the market. A sandbox environment will facilitate this transition, utilising these new technologies and working with new providers to understand clearly how their solutions can participate in the market - what works and what does not - and how they can be refined. This dedicated trial environment will expedite the development of new products, market solutions and the exchange of knowledge and experience which future products and services can build on.

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Outcomes

Key Outcomes from Phase 1:  

• Buy-in was generated from both industry and ESO stakeholders towards REVEAL’s fundamental concepts, meaning there is a strong potential for widespread future adoption. 
• Key problem statements were identified which REVEAL can address, linked to wider energy sector challenges, which positions the project as an impactful initiative. 
• Key vision and purpose statements were synthesized with stakeholders to ensure the project is grounded in the collective input and aspirations of those involved, enhancing its credibility. 
• We also began to define the core capabilities for our REVEAL solutions, aligning with existing ESO digital projects, in order to gain a solid foundation for future integration with existing platforms.  

Key Outcomes from Phase 2:  

• The Feasibility Study concluded that REVEAL and its concepts are feasible, with certain caveats and conditions attached. 
• The technology needed to build REVEAL was feasible in time, due to identified ESO dependencies. The business and industry benefits were clear, with near-term and long-term solutions scoped for further design exercises. 
• Initial findings uncovered that REVEAL solutions were unlikely to be prohibited by costs in the future. 
• Discoveries were made, through engagements with Ofgem, that a trial regulatory sandbox is feasible, but that with current processes it would be unlikely to speed up trials or enable more trials to be conducted. 
• A recommendation was made to proceed to an additional Phase 3 to focus on detailed technical designs and refinement, which would be supported by a workstream dedicated to organisational readiness. 

Key Outcomes from Phase 3:  

• Live Trial Environment and Trial Management Platform concepts and architectures fully designed, and ready to be developed through suggested roadmaps. Additional ‘Trials
• Conditions and Scenarios’ module designed as part of the Live Trial Environment to bring further value in later development iterations. 
• ESO and industry stakeholders bought in to core solutions and understand the benefits of REVEAL, further enabling proposed developments to go forward. 
• Investigation into integration issues related to the Wider Access API in past trials concluded, with the recommendation of initiatives and quick wins to tackle documented issues that are wider than trials. 
• Organisational readiness workstream completed, with the outputs and deliverables well positioned to help the ESO develop REVEAL, and then maintain and operate its environments once created. 

Recommendations compiled advising progression to a Phase 4 of work, focused on development of the Live Trial Environment (starting with a Proof of Concept), and the Trial Management Platform (see Planned Implementation for more detail). 

Lessons Learnt

The project provides insights into many areas, both within the trials space but more widely as well within the ESO and industry. Some of the key lessons have been documented below: 

• Feasibility for a Trials Environment and Platform – The building of an environment dedicated to trials and a supporting platform to enable said trials was found to be feasible during this project. 
• ESO Stakeholder Pain Points – Through our many internal engagements sessions with ESO stakeholders we have captured many pain points that could be addressed by future projects. These have been captured in the Phase 1 and Phase 2 Feasibility Study, and in the Phase 3 Engagement Report​. 
• Use Case Backlog – Through the work we have completed in our use Case backlog, we collated several use cases which are currently out of scope for REVEAL. These are interesting ideas to have in the parking lot for future REVEAL iterations or other projects​.
• Wider Access API (WA API) Report – As part of the API & System Integration workstream, a WA API report was created which explained the problems, potential solutions, and improvement suggestions for the WA API. This has been shared with the relevant ESO teams to take forward outside of REVEAL and trials. 
• As-is Process Maps – As part of the Operating Model deliverable, the as-is process was mapped for the current ESO trial processes using best practices. This could be applied to other processes in the ESO to support current process mapping initiatives. 
• Metrics and KPIs – As part of the Operating Model deliverable, quantitative and qualitative metrics and KPIs for REVEAL success were determined. Many of these metrics align to business priorities and could be leveraged elsewhere in ESO innovation​. 
• Control Room Systems – As part of the Live Trial Environment reports and scoping exercises, information that was not previously known to ESO innovation about ESO systems were uncovered. These can stand as useful terms of reference for future innovation projects in National Control.