To be remunerated for your flexibilities, you may participate in the frequency ancillary services by becoming a reserve provider.

Beneficiaries

• Market participants

• Generators

• Consumers

Frequency Ancillary services

The operation of the power system requires that generation must be equal to consumption at all times.

RTE ensures this balance in real time, factoring in consumption and generation variability (weather, power generation availability, etc.). To maintain the balance between supply and demand, RTE requires dispatchable power reserves, both upward and downward, from capacities based in France or the rest of Europe.

There are three types of reserves which can be successively applied:

Frequency ancillary services are dispatched automatically according to the signals of the system:

• the frequency deviation of the Continental Europe Synchronous Area from the reference frequency (50 Hz) for primary frequency control,
• the load-frequency control level for secondary frequency control.

The characteristics and performance of the frequency control are described in the technical reference documentation (chapter 4.1).

Contracting with RTE

The provision of frequency ancillary services is open to all capacities previously certified in mainland France, regardless of the technology and the level of connection.

• Contracting of frequency containment reserve capacity is done through cross-border tenders on D-1 via the FCR Cooperation.
• Since June 18th 2024, RTE contracts automatic frequency restoration reserve through a national call for tenders on D-1 according to the European Reglement (UE) n°2019/943 of June 5th 2019 on the national electricity market.
• Exchanges between reserve providers are possible at any price for the two types of reserve. These exchanges take place with RTE through NERs (Reserve Exchange Notifications).

To become reserve provider, you are required to comply with the Chapter 4 « Frequency Ancillary Services » of the Market Rules, established in consultation with the market players and approved by the French Energy Regulatory Commission. For this, you must sign a participation agreement as a reserve provider.

To do this, you need to:

1. fill in the questionnaire in annex 4.A10 of the Chapter 4 « Frequency Ancillary Services » of the Market Rules   designed to verify the suitability of the applicant, 
2. if you do not have EIC code, please make the request through the online form,
3. fill in and send annex 4.A1 (participation agreement model) and  annex 4.A2 (list of contacts) of Chapter 4 « Frequency Ancillary Services » of the Market Rules, 
4. send the documents and information listed in annex 4.A1,
5. request access to the RTE telecontrol information exchange system,
6. get your capacities certified in accordance with article 4.G  and  annexes 4.A12 et 4.A13 of Chapter 4 « Frequency Ancillary Services » of the Market Rules, 
7. declare the elements making up your reserve perimeter using annex 4.A4 of Chapter 4 « Frequency Ancillary Services » of the Market Rules.

Your services as a reserve provider

RTE offers a set of services for each reserve provider to carry out and optimise their activity, including:

• publication of public and private data on the Customer Services Portal (HMI and downloads) and on the Transparency platform of ENTSOE,
• provision of data via APIs on the data portal,
• access to the market services and applications to send scheduling files of frequency ancillary services.

To access these services, you may need to create an account and/or hold a PKI certificate.

Day-ahead tenders for the contracting of automatic frequency restoration reserve capacities

Since June 19th 2024, day-ahead tenders for the contracting of automatic frequency restoration reserve capacities 

Historically, RTE contracted its secondary reserve capacities by prescription with obliged producers on D-1. These capacities were paid at a flat price of capacity (this price is fixed annualy and specified in the heading below entitled ‘Regulated Capacity Price’). 
Since 19 June 2024 (SY2 date), RTE has been contracting its aFRR capacity requirements through a daily call for tenders one day before the balancing capacity is supplied, with a contractual duration of one day maximum, in accordance with Regulation (EU) no. 2019/943 of 5 June 2019 on the internal market in electricity. 
If an indivisible tender is submitted, the proposed power volume must be less than a maximum threshold set at 20MW.

The automatic frequency restoration reserve requirements for the 4th quarter of 2024 are described as follows:

Open days
 

Non-working days

The automatic frequency restoration reserve requirements for the 1st quarter of 2025 are described as follows:

Open days

Non-working days

The automatic frequency restoration reserve requirements for the 2nd quarter of 2025 are described as follows:

Open days

Non-working days

The automatic frequency restoration reserve (aFRR) requirement of RTE is calculated quarterly in accordance with the method described in the Load-Frequency Control Block operational agreement (LFC block). The calculation methodology provides for the application of a coefficient to take into account the overscheduling of market participants in the final dispatch schedule, following an RTE balancing operation for “P=C” reasons. This is 100%.

Energy mobilisation procedures

A market participant is under obligation to schedule, at a minimum, through one or more RPGs, the aFRR capacity at the level selected in the national day-ahead call for tenders (modulo NERs procured/sold).

The scheduled capacity level must not exceed the certified level for the reserve providing group.

The European Electricity Balancing Guideline specifically provides for European transmission system operators to put forward a strategy for implementing a common platform for exchange of aFRR.

The PICASSO project (Platform for the International Coordination of Automated Frequency Restoration and Stable System Operation) aims to implement this platform.

RTE has organised its connection to the PICASSO platform in 3 steps.
The PICASSO page presents each of the 3 stages and the procedures to be followed by players to submit their energy offers, the activation procedures and the settlement of activated offers.
Since 21 November 2023, automatic frequency restoration reserve has been activated according to merit Order mode in France (corresponding to step 2).

Compensation related to a frequency ancillary services failure due to a balancing mechanism operation

A compensation relating to a frequency ancillary services failure due to a balancing mechanism operation is paid by the reserve providers to RTE. This compensation is revised SA on 1 April of each year Y, for the current period from 1 April of the year Y to 31 March of the year Y+1.

It is calculated as follows:

Where:

• ΣA-1 additional costs SSY is the sum of the ancillary services additional costs (EUR) of the year Y-1, determined in accordance with the Chapter 2 « Balancing Mechanism » of the Market Rules,

• ΣA -1 SSY reconstituted volumes is the sum of the ancillary services reconstituted volumes for the year Y-1 (in hMW), determined in accordance with the Chapter 2 « Balancing Mechanism » of the Market Rules,

• ΣY-1 aVU+ (1-a)VD is the sum for all Reserve Providers and for all Half-Hourly Intervals for the year Y-1, and for all Types of Reserve, of the volumes V (in hMW), where VU is the upward volume,

• and VD is the downward volume,

• a is the ratio of upward/downward compensation.

S computing for the year 2024

• Sum of additional costs SSY for 2023 : 123 720 033,02 €
• Sum of SSY reconstituted volumes in 2023 : 814 947,89 MWh
• 2023 balance : x € (as a reminder, the 2022 balance was - 28 320 246,47  €)
• S₂₀₂₄= 140,54 €/hMW

Regulated Capacity Price

The Regulated Capacity Price (PFC) is the regulated price of the reserve obligation remuneration, it is revised each year on the 1st of January.

The PFC₂₀₂₄ value is 11,049 €/MW (for one half-hour).

This fixed price concerns:

• for the remuneration of aFRR capacities, until date SY2. 
• for the remuneration of FCR capacities in case of certain fallback configurations due to an issue on the FCR call for tenders.
• the formula for calculating the amount of compensation related to a negative reserve balance (FCR or aFRR).
• the formula for calculating the rebate amount in case of failures leading to a negative reserve balance (FCR or aFRR).
• reserve providing groups, in the formula for calculating penalties in case of failures leading to a negative reserve balance (FCR or aFRR).

Additional information

• List of reserve providers
• Schedule your active powers
• Participate in the balancing mechanism
• Guideline on electricity balancing
• PICASSO
• Overview of partners APIs for market players 

Reference documentation

• Market Rules : General Provisions 

• Market Rules : Chapter 4 – Frequency Ancillary Services  

• Project: standard qualification certification template for secondary frequency control - “Aggregates / Storage” 

• European Regulation on Electricity Balancing

• Rules of Access to the RTE Information System for Frequency Ancillary Services

• RTE technical reference documentation

• Documentation on gaining access to the RTE telecontrol information exchange system

• GIPSE documentation for declaring reserve perimeters

• RACOON documentation for contracting through obligations and the aFRR call for tenders

• TOPNIVEAU and BOSS documentation for the automatic frequency restoration reserve market

• NER files (xsd)

Contact

For any questions, please contact marketservices@rte-france.com