UK Link and the proposed Central Switching Service
Consultation
- Upcoming
- Open
- Closed (awaiting decision)
- Closed (with decision)
- Publication date
- Closing date
- Industry sector
- Supply and Retail Market
- Transmission Network
- Related consultations
- Moving to reliable next-day switching: Consultation on Target Operating Model and Delivery Approach
- Decision
Ofgem will consult shortly on the proposed design of new harmonised switching arrangements for electricity and gas. We expect the design of those arrangements to include the creation of a Central Switching Service (CSS) which would provide a single, harmonised, dual fuel switching process for gas and electricity. The CSS would replace the switching processes currently in place in electricity (supported by MPRS) and gas (supported by UK Link). Our view is that the CSS should be procured through a competitive process.
In April 2017, the new governance arrangements for Xoserve were completed. Following go-live of the refresh of UK Link (Project Nexus) on 1 June this year, Xoserve have indicated that they would see value for the energy sector from leveraging the industry investment in Project Nexus and consider that they are now in a position to provide a CSS, built on UK Link, and would welcome the opportunity to do so. However, Xoserve’s existing governance arrangements could prevent them from competing in a competitive procurement for CSS provision. Ofgem is seeking stakeholder views on:
- whether there would be particular benefits, disadvantages or risks from basing a CSS on the new UK Link system
- whether there are substantive barriers to Xoserve participating in a competitive procurement for a new CSS
- the potential to remove or reduce those barriers in order to enable them to do so
Respond name
Rachel Clark, Switching Programme Director