In this contributed article, Yayu Yang, product manager at GridBeyond, a technology platform for managing distributed and flexible energy resources, covers the launch of Ireland’s planning and dispatch program in the energy storage market.
The Irish electricity market is entering a new era with the launch of the Scheduling and Dispatch Program (SDP) from November 11, 2025, a major initiative led by Ireland’s two Transmission System Operators (TSOs). EirGrid and SONI, to modernize the way energy generation and grid flexibility are managed.
For the first time, batteries will be able to participate directly in the Irish wholesale electricity market. This reform represents an important milestone for the country’s transition to a low-carbon energy system and opens up new commercial opportunities for storage operators.
The SDP will enable battery operators to unlock their full revenue potential, but it will also require more advanced optimization capabilities and trading strategies. By requiring active participation in multiple market windows, operators are challenged to predict, bid and ship with much greater precision than before.
At the same time, the reform is expected to increase investor confidence in the Irish warehousing sector. Developers have long viewed limited market access as a major barrier to financial viability. By removing this bottleneck, Ireland strengthens its position as one of the most advanced and flexible energy markets in Europe.
From limitation to opportunity
In his White Paper Storage behind the meter (2023)Energy Storage Ireland noted that:
“All storage projects cannot fully participate in the energy market due to restrictions in the transmission system operator (TSO) market systems. This prevents storage assets from selling the energy they store on the wholesale market and competing with other market participants.”
These restrictions are now unblocked. The new upgrade to the SDP market system will allow storage assets to both buy and sell energy on the Day-Ahead, Intraday and Balancing markets, giving them the same trading access as traditional generators.
Before SDP, Ireland’s battery primarily participated through the Delivering a Secure, Sustainable Electricity System (DS3) programme. DS3 is designed to provide high-speed frequency and backup services that help stabilize the electricity grid as more renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power are connected.
A boost for revenues from batteries and renewable energy sources
By allowing energy storage to fully participate in the wholesale market, Ireland is supporting the goal of reaching 80% renewable electricity by 2030. Batteries will now be able to respond dynamically to fluctuations in wind and solar energy generation, helping to balance supply and demand more efficiently.
GridBeyond’s analysis shows that under the new structure, a 10 MW battery with a 2-hour runtime could generate 12 to 37% higher annual revenue by participating in the wholesale market compared to DS3-only operations.
Source: GridBeyond.
At the same time, the reform is creating new investment momentum in both battery projects and optimization technologies, as investors begin to see stronger returns on capital (IRR) and greater market certainty.
What this means operationally
Under the previous DS3 framework, battery participation followed a relatively static, set-and-forget model: capacity was committed and payments were fixed.
The new SDP changes this completely. Batteries can now actively trade energy in the wholesale market, which requires a much more dynamic optimization approach, with bidding and dispatch decisions responding to real-time price and system signals. For trading teams and aggregators, this introduces a new level of market interaction – across the Day-Ahead (DA), Intraday (IDA1, IDA2, IDA3) and Balancing Markets – requiring continuous analytics and automation to predict price gaps, track cost status and optimize performance.
To support this market shift, AI platforms, such as GridBeyond’s Bid Optimizer, can are developed to help batteries manage bidding, forecasting and shipping in the new market change. These tools enable batteries to accurately respond to real-time price and system signals, allowing battery owners to maximize their revenues by participating in both the wholesale energy market and DS3 services, while maintaining compliance with market regulations.
