25/06/2025 - Flex appeal: AI as an enabler of local flexibility markets

Electrification necessitates demand-side flexibility – shifting domestic and commercial consumption to better use existing grid capacity.

However, to unlock the full value of flexibility as an option for network management, these services need to be procured on timescales that align with providers’ operational realities.

This talk demonstrates how AI can help distribution network operators proactively identify flexibility needs, procure services closer to real-time, and scale markets across all voltage levels, highlighting ongoing work led by Faculty AI, Northern Powergrid, Oaktree Power and EV.Energy.

In doing so, it underscores how incremental innovation – maximising the value of existing infrastructure and processes – is as critical as breakthrough technologies in advancing the transition to Net Zero.