LONDON, April 16, 2025 — Kyndryl (NYSE: KD), a leading provider of mission-critical enterprise technology services, announced the successful delivery of a new Megawatt Dispatch platform (MWD) in partnership with UK Power Networks Distribution System Operator (DSO). The partnership has enabled the accelerated delivery of new clean energy sources across the South East and supports the UK in meeting its Net Zero targets.
The Megawatt Dispatch platform was designed by UK Power Networks to overcome the upstream transmission grid limitations in distributing clean energy from small energy providers to consumers. The local grid distributes electricity from the national grid to homes and businesses. However, when surplus electricity is available, transmission constraints can prevent the local grid from accepting any new Distributed Energy Resources (DERs). Ultimately, this means customers will benefit from more reliable access to clean, locally generated energy — even during times of peak demand or grid constraints.
UK Power Networks DSO needed a way to support the increasing use of the local electricity grid to distribute clean electricity from small energy providers directly to consumers, so it engaged Kyndryl to devise and deliver a more efficient and effective platform. The MWD platform enables the National Energy System Operator (NESO) and UK Power Networks DSO to accelerate the connection of these new sources of renewable energy by 10 years while keeping within existing transmission limits.
The platform seamlessly integrates UK Power Networks DSO’s existing flexibility services dispatch infrastructure with that of the NESO, marking one of the industry’s first implementations of this coordinated approach. The MWD platform not only allows continued connection and growth of DERs in the south coast of England but also enables energy producers to earn additional revenues by creating access to both transmission and distribution flexibility markets. In doing so, the platform is helping the UK to meet its Net Zero targets in four key ways:
- Accelerating the connection of clean energy providers through quicker onboarding, enabling real-time local grid management and simplifying access to the transmission energy market.
- Optimizing energy surpluses when UK Power Networks exports energy back into the national grid, allowing the NESO to stop and start DERs’ energy production in real time.
- Enhancing the whole system balancing approach by enabling DERs to participate in NESO’s flexibility market.
- Supporting the management of outages and peak demand, allowing the system operators to better manage energy fluctuations.
The MWD platform was built on the Microsoft Azure Cloud foundation that Kyndryl had already designed and built for UK Power Networks, having recently announced a four-year extension of its existing partnership with UK Power Networks.
Using Agile Delivery, Kyndryl built the MWD platform at speed, using a shared product and platform approach. This approach was chosen to accelerate delivery and ensure operational stability and security and was achieved by working closely with UK Power Networks DSO and UK Power Networks IT teams.
Tim Manandhar, Low Carbon Solutions Design Manager, UK Power Networks DSO, said: “UK Power Networks DSO’s primary focus is customer satisfaction and meeting the evolving needs of the market. Kyndryl is a key partner in making this vision a reality with the delivery of the Megawatt Dispatch platform. This innovation delivers benefits for the electricity network by accelerating the connection of generators and batteries. Without it to manage producers of energy in real time, many new sources of renewable energy would remain unconnected — limiting the energy available to power our homes and businesses.”
“We’re proud to extend our existing relationship with UK Power Networks further,” said John Chambers, Kyndryl President UKI. “The delivery of an industry first in the Megawatt Dispatch platform and supporting the UK’s ‘Net Zero Carbon’ targets is a testament to our successful partnership. The cloud-native approach allowed the joint core team to focus efforts on building functionality, resulting in the timely delivery of this advanced solution, the benefits of which will be passed directly to UK Power Networks customers.”
About UK Power Networks
UK Power Networks owns and runs the cables and substations that deliver electricity from the national grid to 8.5 million homes and businesses across London, the South East and East of England, serving approximately 20 million people. As the country’s biggest electricity distributor, it has invested more than £6.4 billion in its electricity networks since 2011, focusing on safety, network reliability, sustainability and affordability by caring for vulnerable customers and keeping costs low. It was named Utility of the Year in 2023, 2016, 2015 and 2012. It is also a founder member of the Levelling up Coalition, second on the UK Inclusive Companies list as well as one of only 5% of companies worldwide to achieve Platinum Investors in People status. For more information, visit www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk.
About Kyndryl
Kyndryl (NYSE: KD) is a leading provider of mission-critical enterprise technology services offering advisory, implementation and managed service capabilities to thousands of customers in more than 60 countries. As the world’s largest IT infrastructure services provider, the company designs, builds, manages and modernizes the complex information systems that the world depends on every day. For more information, visit www.kyndryl.com.
Kyndryl press contact
press@kyndryl.com
