Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether carbon intensity is used as a criterion by the National Energy System Operator when selecting balancing actions on the electricity system.

NESO has duty in legislation to promote enabling the government to deliver net zero. Set out in their balancing principles statement is how they consider this duty when balancing the system. NESO are building the capacity to operate the system in a zero-carbon way and consider that the balancing principles allow zero carbon technologies to fully participate in our balancing services. NESO also has a licence obligation to balance the system in an economic and efficient manner, as well as not to unduly discriminate between technology types. They factor in all of these requirements when balancing the system.