Transport capacity is the amount of electricity that can be safely and reliably transported via the grid of the grid operator to and from a connection or area.
Every cable, transformer and grid component has a technical limit. If too much electricity flows through a connection—due to high generation or multiple large consumers using power at the same time—the grid can become overloaded. This is known as grid congestion.
Transport capacity is therefore the available space on the grid at a given moment, within the physical and operational limits of the system.
GOPACS is the congestion management platform that enables grid operators to temporarily create additional transport capacity in areas with (expected) congestion. This is done by activating flexible capacity via the market—for example, by reducing consumption in one location or increasing generation elsewhere.
This can be done in two ways:
This allows grid operators to better steer supply and demand—keeping the system stable.
