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NETWORK / 10 / MARCH 2020 OPERATOR TRANSITION Why the DSO transition must accelerate Network operators need to make big changes to transition to DSOs. But how much progress are they actually making? Elaine Knutt investigates T he Ofgem-regu- lated distribution network operators (DNOs) are on a journey towards becoming distri - bution system operators (DSOs), with a minor change in terminology hiding a vast change in the scope of their responsibilities. As DSOs, it's expected that they will coordi - nate and balance regional grids; maintain and manage new connections; procure demand- side management flexibility, including at the grid edge; create new markets with maximum participation from innovators and community groups; capture, process and share network data while maintaining cyber-security – and all within a profit-limiting, cost-sharing regulatory environ - ment that Ofgem has yet to spell out. But while there's general agreement about the nature and scope of the transition, there is still some uncertainty about resentation from the DNOs, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), Ofgem, academics and trade bodies, aims to clarify objectives for the transition, and facilitate the collaboration necessary to achieve them. As part of its consultation on its programme for the coming year, it recently announced that it would publish a "DSO Implementation Plan" by summer 2020 – a document that will no doubt help to fill in gaps in the sector's knowledge. The ENA also highlighted the pro - gress it had made in 2019, where it published its commitment to exploring the markets to procure flexibility; a "system resource register", a web page giving ac - cess to the six DNOs' published data on their distributed energy resources; and guidance on how the DNOs would collectively manage connection queue man- agement. The DNOs themselves express confidence in the process. At Electricity North West, regula- tion and communications direc- tor Paul Bircham says: "We've got a clear sense of direction overall, so the steps we need to take are pretty clear. What's really helped us make progress is having all the DNO, National Grid and other stakeholders working together through the Open Networks Project to scope out functions, especially where we are engaging with other markets and can seek stand - ardisation. I think we're quite aligned [with the other DNOs], we're making progress, and we also have a sense of alignment with Ofgem." Nevertheless, there are perceptions in some quarters that the transition process, and the stewardship of the Open Net - works Project, has lacked mo- mentum. "There have been lots of good noises around the transi- tion, but we echo what Ofgem said in its open letter to the ENA [in July 2019]. It talked about a lack of clarity on timelines and the need for tangible objectives," says Conor Maher- McWilliams, head of flexibility at Ovo-owned Kaluza. "It needs to create con - crete, tangible objectives against which success can be meas- ured. There have been delays and no clear finish line." Scott fears that, in the absence of clearer guidance from the Open Networks Project and Ofgem, DNOs' boards and sharehold - ers may be steering in the right direction, but not hitting the accelerator. "Are the investors saying to the chief executives, 'OK do your part, do some trials, but until Ofgem shows broadly the direction it wants to see, don't go too far?'" Scott suggests. "Ofgem needs to indicate what it means by the DSO role, and how DSOs will earn their revenue." At Smarter Grid Solutions, whose Distributed Energy Resource Management SoŸware (DERMS) is currently used by four UK DNOs, executive director Gra - ham Ault shares a similar view. "A year or two ago, there was lots of thinking and ideas; now people are trying to work out what's genuinely valuable and achievable and how it will slot the definitions, milestones and timescales. As independent energy consultant John Scott sums up: "I don't think I've ever seen clearly described what a DSO actually is intended to be. There is plenty of PowerPoint- level material, but it's incred - ibly vague and generalised." At the Association for Renewable Energy and Clean Technology (REA), which represents many of the low carbon generators that will operate in this new territory, head of policy Frank Gordon is also in the dark: "What exactly is a DSO? If we knew, we could track the requirements, but it's not finalised as of yet. No-one knows exactly what it means, the Energy Networks Association [ENA] and the networks have their 'road maps', and there are various consultations on what it might look like, but it's still quite ambiguous as to how it turns out." The ENA-brokered Open Networks Project, active since 2017 and drawing in rep -