As of January 1, 2026, participation in the Balancing Mechanism will become mandatory for all renewable electricity generation assets with a capacity of 10 MW or more. In this new regulatory framework, having a reliable, high-performance and immediately operational solution for all types of wind power installations is essential. Against this backdrop, ENERTRAG and Alpiq announce the launch of a strategic collaboration that will enable ENERTRAG to offer Alpiq’s solution to its customers.
Meeting a major regulatory requirement
“For renewable energy producers, this legal obligation implies extreme responsiveness - less than 15 minutes - as well as strict compliance with the technical and operational requirements of the grid operator. Such operations require skills ranging from grid engineering to securing production facilities,” explains Alexis Noel, Head of Operations Sales at ENERTRAG.
Participation in the Balancing Mechanism aims to strengthen the stability of the electricity system by enabling RTE to activate production or consumption capacities upwards or downwards in real time. Aware of these challenges, ENERTRAG has chosen to rely on the expertise of Alpiq, a long-standing and recognised player in flexibility and balancing mechanisms, to support its customers and assets through this regulatory transition.
An integrated, robust and scalable technical solution
The solution developed by Alpiq, already deployed at around one hundred wind farms and currently being installed at more than 150 additional sites, is based on a remote control system for generation assets, enabling:
- effective participation in the Balancing Mechanism,
- controlled reduction or shutdown of production (start & stop) according to the needs of the electricity system,
- secure and reliable communication between installations and balancing operators,
- rapid compliance with regulatory requirements applicable from 2026 onwards.
Integrated into ENERTRAG’s operational processes, Alpiq’s solution follows an intelligent asset management approach while limiting operational impacts for plant operators.
A performance and control lever for operators
Beyond regulatory compliance alone, the collaboration between ENERTRAG and Alpiq enables operators to:
- anticipate grid peaks and congestion,
- better manage periods of negative electricity prices,
- monetise the flexibility of their assets,
- secure long-term operations in a context of profound transformation of the electricity system,
- all through a turnkey investment with competitive costs and no structural modifications.
“By offering this solution today, ENERTRAG positions itself as a proactive partner capable of supporting its assets in the face of regulatory developments and new market mechanisms. This innovation concretely illustrates our expertise in designing fully controllable electricity systems - a core pillar of ENERTRAG’s strategy and our vision of the energy transition,” says Vincent Masureel, Managing Director of ENERTRAG France.
“Flexibility is in Alpiq’s DNA. That is why we were pioneers in France in managing the flexibility of renewable generation fleets, and today we are the market leader with more than 4 GW of renewable assets participating in the Balancing Mechanism. ENERTRAG is among the first producers to have chosen the solution developed by Alpiq to optimise its generation portfolio on the Balancing Mechanism as early as the first half of 2024 - a choice perfectly aligned with the economic and regulatory challenges facing the renewable energy sector,” says Olivier Puit, Managing Director of Alpiq Energie France.
