NESO Redirects South West Reactive Power Needs to New Mid-term Reactive Power Market

NESO announced it will not proceed with further procurement or contract award under the South West Reactive Power 2026 Consultation (closed 10 July 2026). Instead, reactive power needs in that area will be met through the newly launched Mid-term Reactive Power Market, which went live on 6 October 2026. Providers who participated in the SW consultation and others in relevant areas have been directly notified and encouraged to register for the new market.

This signals a structural shift in how NESO procures reactive power services in Great Britain, moving away from bespoke regional consultation-based procurement toward a standing Mid-term Reactive Power Market mechanism. This could change provider participation routes, procurement timelines, and price discovery for reactive power services, with implications for voltage management and network security in affected regions.

The Mid-term Reactive Power Market represents a new procurement channel for an ancillary service traditionally sourced via ad hoc regional consultations (e.g., South West Reactive Power). By discontinuing the SW-specific procurement track and funnelling demand into a centralized mid-term market, NESO appears to be standardizing and potentially increasing liquidity for reactive power provision. This has design implications for how locational reactive power needs are translated into market signals, how providers assess entry economics, and whether locational granularity is preserved within a more centralized mechanism. The source does not detail the market's clearing methodology, eligibility criteria, or pricing rules, limiting assessment of deeper design impacts at this stage.

Not specified in source; likely falls under NESO ancillary services procurement arrangements (framework details not disclosed)

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Primary sources