Ara Ake Launches $1 Million National Flex Discovery Fund To Boost Flexibility Innovation In Aotearoa New Zealand

Ara Ake, New Zealand's national energy innovation centre, has announced the launch of the National Flex Discovery Fund, which offers up to $1 million in grants to accelerate the development and visibility of flexible energy resources across the country. The Fund reflects Ara Ake’s commitment to accelerating the commercialisation of emerging energy solutions in support of New Zealand’s energy future.

Flexible energy resources, such as batteries, electric vehicles, and smart appliances, hold immense potential to support the electricity grid during peak demand periods, reduce the need for infrastructure investment, and lower energy costs for consumers. Despite this potential, much of New Zealand’s energy flexibility remains unrealised.

"New Zealand’s energy future relies on our ability to cost-effectively integrate more renewables into the electricity system and harness flexible resources," said Cristiano Marantes, Chief Executive of Ara Ake.

"However, much of this flexibility is currently invisible or inaccessible, making it unusable. As a result, customers cannot fully benefit from their own energy resources. We have been working with the Electricity Authority (EA) and the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) to develop an initiative that can deliver at pace a positive impact for New Zealand."

The National Flex Discovery Fund is designed to accelerate the commercialisation of flexibility innovation by providing grants to flexibility service providers or aggregators (FSPs) in two key areas:

• Connecting to open-access platforms - Assisting FSPs in onboarding to open-access flexibility platforms.
• Enhancing capacity and reliability - Supporting the scaling and improvement of the capacity and reliability of existing flexible resources already connected to these platforms.

"EECA is working with partners across the sector to enable distributed flexibility systems for New Zealanders. Visibility is the critical first step - flexible, bi-directional approaches being seen and trusted, will put us in the best position to introduced this more widely. They can also add more value by responding during times of high demand, like winter peaks. This initiative will help us all to move forward," says Dr Marcos Pelenur, Chief Executive of EECA.

The Fund is informed by an Ara Ake-commissioned white paper, which identified that many FSPs face significant upfront challenges and costs-such as integration, software development and customer engagement.

"Reducing regulatory barriers and fostering a culture that embraces innovation is something we strongly support, so it’s fantastic to see this Fund being launched. It represents a real opportunity to benefit all New Zealanders. We’re excited to see cross-industry collaboration and gain insights that can be applied across the sector as new ideas accelerate from concept to market," says Mark Herring, Electricity Authority General Manager of Corporate and Market Services.

Ara Ake is now inviting applications from flexibility service providers across New Zealand, particularly those with a focus on unlocking the value of distributed energy resources (DER) and developing scalable, market-ready solutions. Applications will be evaluated based on their potential to enhance the country’s energy flexibility and deliver value to consumers.

"This is about enabling an energy future where every flexibility resource that is capable - no matter how big or small - can be discovered, orchestrated, measured and verified to deliver a more affordable, reliable, and sustainable energy system for Aotearoa," says David Knight, Transpower Executive General Manager Strategy, Regulation & Governance.

To learn more about the National Flex Discovery Fund, access the white paper, or apply for funding, visit the website: https://www.araake.co.nz/project/ara-ake-national-flex-discovery-fund 

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