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NETWORK / 15 / JULY/AUGUST 2019 we can simultaneously maintain supply reliably in the most cost- e ective way. The variability of renewables embedded at the grid edge is likely to put increas- ing strain on the system, posing challenges for maintaining stable frequency and supply. This is why, alongside over- arching questions about energy policy, climate targets and in- vestment, the Energy Institute's new Energy Barometer 2019 report takes an in-depth look at progress on exibility. The Energy Barometer is a window on the views of the EI's UK membership, professionals whose day-job is to provide and manage the energy on which we all depend. The 2019 edition raises and highlights some clear and important points. Flexibility can of course mean many things. Convention- ally it's on the supply side with large dispatchable power plant or pumped storage capacity sitting dormant, ready to kick in to meet demand at peak times. However, EI members increas- ingly associate it with battery storage (on both grid-scale and small-scale) and technologies enabling consumers to vary their demand patterns, even be- hind the meter, when the wind and sun are not delivering. Finding common ground Whatever the technology, I Š nd common ground with more than four in every Š ve EI members who told our survey there needs to be incentivisation of system exibility. This is vital for accommodating the rise of renewables and other causes of variability on our power net- works in a cost-e ective way. I also share their frustration that a lack of political will has been holding back progress and is the main barrier to scaling up these technologies. Despite commitments made by the Gov- ernment and regulator Ofgem in 2017, 40 per cent of EI members think the UK's progress on ex- ibility in the past two years has been minimal. So, what should be done? More than three Š – hs of EI members favour the Govern- ment creating a market or other incentives for the development of exibility by large non- domestic consumers. Two Š – hs believe the Government should create a level playing Š eld for demand and supply side ex- ibility. This echoes the ruling last year by the European Court of Justice that the Capacity Mar- ket unfairly favoured traditional supply-side technologies at the expense of clean energy and exibility-related companies. The need for greater e ort applies in relation to house- hold consumers too. Half of EI members believe the beneŠ ts of smart homes need to be promoted. Although more than 60 per cent of EI members believe tari s rewarding exible demand will be attractive to householders, a similar propor- tion nevertheless believes that very few consumers are cur- rently likely to allow suppliers to control their appliances, even if Š nancial beneŠ ts are passed on. That, surely, is a concern for our chances of maximising the lower bills and system wide beneŠ ts promised by the smart, digitalised homes of the future. There may even be an industrial windfall for the UK in exibility and the closely related Š eld of digitalisation. More than 60 per cent of EI members believe supportive policy and regulation could open the door to the UK becoming a global leader in these areas. Ministers have set out bold ambitions - in their recent sector deal to ramp up o shore wind capacity to 30GW by 2030 and now to increase the Climate Change Act's 2050 target to net-zero emissions. Both have implications and, for consum- ers to get the fairest deal, the transition must be pursued cost-e ectively and in a way that maintains reliable supplies. That calls for a renewed and visionary focus on exibility. The Energy Barometer 2019 is published at www.energyinst.org/ barometer/2019 Megger's Andrea Bonetti discusses the importance of the new International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standards and how they apply to everyone who works with relay protection systems. The IEC's Technical Committee 95 is working on the IEC 60255- 1xx series of standards covering functional requirements for measuring relays and related equipment used to protect electrical distribution and transmission systems. IEC 60255-1xx standards already published are: IEC 60255-151:2009, functional requirements for over/under current protection IEC 60255-127:2010, functional requirements for over/under voltage protection IEC 60255-149:2013, functional requirements for thermal electrical relays IEC 60255-121:2014, functional requirements for distance protection IEC 60255-181:2019, functional requirements for frequency protection. Standards expected to be published by the beginning of 2020 are: IEC 60255-187-1, functional requirements for restrained and unrestrained differential protection of motors, generators and transformers. Many believe the standards only apply to relay manufacturers, but relay users also need to take them into account, as they provide defi nitions of relay performance along with standardised tests and methods to assess and report them. They can, therefore, provide users with an excellent reference for acceptance tests. The standards don't normally include pass/fail criteria; users create "profi les" with acceptance criteria relating to their own specifi c applications. Information and defi nitions in the standards guide profi le creation. The standards also contain details of declarations relay manufacturers must make. Knowing manufacturers must provide this information makes it easier for engineers to design reliable protection systems. In summary, standards in the IEC 60255-1xx series are relevant to everyone who works with relay protection systems. For further information email info@megger.com I N D U S T RY I N S I G H T New IEC protection standards for all The above fractal represents the beauty of the standardisation.