Twentieth anniversary of the Balancing and Settlement Code
This Saturday marked the 20th anniversary of the Balancing and Settlement Code (BSC), which was launched as part of NETA (the New Electricity Trading arrangements) on 27 March 2001.
NETA created a wholesale electricity market for England and Wales to replace the Electricity Pool. It allowing electricity to be traded bilaterally between buyers and sellers. In 2005 the new arrangements were extended to Scotland (and since then they became the British Electricity Trading Arrangements (BETTA).
Elexon, and the BSC Panel (which governs the code) were both set up in August 2000 in preparation for managing the BSC when the arrangements went live. Elexon’s role is to make sure that payments for imbalances in wholesale electricity supply and demand are settled accurately and efficiently.
The energy market has changed markedly since NETA and the BSC went live. Back then, there where a small number of large incumbent Suppliers and centralised power stations served customers. The market is now more diverse, with an increased range of small and medium sized Suppliers and a wide range of distributed generators.
Elexon’s role has grown as the market has changed. We now serve 490 BSC Parties compared with around 55 Parties in 2001.
Since 2001 we have:
- Implemented 264 modifications to the BSC.
- Implemented 531 changes to BSC subsidiary documents and systems.
- Worked through 90 BSC Issues and identified a suitable solution.
For a more detailed look back at Elexon’s work since 2001, read our article about Elexon reaching 20 years as the BSC manager.