Ofgem has sounded a warning to the new Electricity System Operator (ESA), currently being spun-out of National Grid, that it expects it to be proactive in fostering transparent markets and competition in the industry.

The warning came as Ofgem decided that a rule-change that would ensure a single information point for market messages, such as an unexpected plant outage, did not have to be treated as ‘urgent’. The proposer had hoped it would be in place before the upcoming winter.

The proposal would ensure all market participants were working from the same information but Ofgem said it did not merit urgent discussion. However it noted that companies had made similar suggestions informally to the ESO and told it to move the issue on, saying: “the ESO should explore whether there are ways to increase transparency around system warnings as soon as possible, potentially outside of the industry codes process”.

More broadly, it  reminded the industry of the ESO’s new obligations. It said, “we expect the ESO to proactively support transparency in system operation and promote competition in markets. Where market participants raise issues in this area, we expect the ESO to actively consider and respond to them in a timely and efficient manner. This may include, for example, taking measures to publish additional or more accessible information on its website, proactively raising code modifications or taking an active role in supporting and driving forward modifications raised by other parties.”