System operator
The Energy White Paper, Powering our Net Zero Future (CP 337), published in December 2020 by HM Government, suggests that system operators: ‘Manage the whole energy system and keep it in balance so that gas and electricity are available when needed.’
Planning our electric future: a White Paper for secure, affordable and low-carbon electricity, Glossary, published by the Department of Energy & Climate Change on 14 July 2011, defines the System Operator (SO) as: ‘…responsible for ensuring the electricity system remains balanced within each half hour period. Generators may generate more or less energy than they have sold; customers of suppliers may consume more or less energy than the supplier has purchased. The SO must ensure that imbalances in supply and demand are addressed on a second by second basis, within the constraints of the network.’
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