To advance the UK’s journey toward achieving net zero, Energy & Utility Skills is proud to announce the establishment of the Power Generation Group within the National Skills Academy for Power (NSAP). This initiative strategically aligns with the needs of the renewable sector within the power generation industry. Power generation
The world’s longest land and subsea interconnector started commercial operations at the end of December last year (2023). National Grid’s new Viking Link electricity interconnector became operational this afternoon transporting power between the UK and Denmark. The link has a capacity of 1.4 GW and stretches for 475 miles under land
Black & Veatch, a global leader in critical infrastructure solutions, shares insights into the rapidly evolving energy transition in a special video interview series filmed at COP 28 in Dubai. Watch here Youssef Merjaneh Senior Vice President & Managing Director – Europe, Middle East and Africa; and Deepa Poduval, Senior
RWE, the largest power generator in Wales, and Dragon LNG, one of the three UK LNG terminals providing energy security into the UK, have awarded a contract to AtkinsRéalis, a world-leading design, engineering and project management organisation, to carry out an engineering study for their collaborative project ‘MUST’ – Multi-Utility
Energy and technology group Octopus Energy has joined forces with The Hill Group, the award-winning five-star housebuilder and Clarion Housing Group, the largest social landlord in the country, in a landmark strategic partnership to revolutionise sustainable living in the UK. Hill and Octopus Energy are developing the nation’s most extensive
Vital Energi are working with speciality chemical manufacturer, Solenis, to reduce the carbon consumption at its Bradford site through a new 17-year partnership to upgrade and operate the site’s energy centre, futureproofing the site’s production capabilities. Solenis is always looking for ways to run its sites more sustainably, enhancing growth
Leading Net Zero Consultancy, The Consultus International Group, has announced bringing utility infrastructure management division back to the fore, as a standalone business unit. Formerly lacking a striking identity, Consultus’ Utility Infrastructure Management area of the businesses has rebranded as ‘Connectus’, arming the division with its own individuality and place
Dynamic scheduling software specialist FLS – FAST LEAN SMART has won a field service planning and scheduling contract for E.ON, one of the UK’s leading energy providers. E.ON is a leading installer of energy efficiency solutions including smart meters, solar panels, air source heat pumps, batteries and electric vehicle chargers.
With storm season in full force, SP Energy Networks is investigating the potential of using artificial intelligence to help predict faults in the electricity network ahead of severe weather hitting In a UK first, SP Energy Networks is trialling AI technology to better pinpoint potential faults on the electricity network
Hundreds of energy innovators are set to descend on Liverpool on 31 October and 1 November, for this year’s Energy Innovation Summit. We are pleased to announce that Andrew Bowie MP will deliver this year’s keynote remarks. Minister Bowie, whose ministerial portfolio includes energy networks and nuclear, will join the
To advance the UK’s journey toward achieving net zero, Energy & Utility Skills is proud to announce the establishment of the Power Generation Group within the National Skills Academy for Power (NSAP). This initiative strategically aligns with the needs of the renewable sector within the power generation industry. Power generation is undergoing significant technological advancements such as carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS), energy from waste, wind, and other renewable sources. These advancements are creating numerous job opportunities, with further anticipated industry growth indicating a requirement for an additional 70,000 skilled professionals within the offshore wind sector alone by 2030. In October 2023, the world’s largest offshore wind farm, Dogger Bank, produced power for the first time, and upon full operation, it will provide power equivalent to the needs of six million homes. In addition to this, more than 15 million tonnes of residual waste is converted annually by the UK’s Energy Recovery Facilities (ERFs), enough to supply half the homes in London for an entire year. Currently, however, many employers express concerns about finding and securing the right talent. The Power Generation Group is taking steps to address these concerns by identifying skill gaps and shortages. They have already recognised the need for a targeted approach in crucial areas within energy from waste, such as carbon capture, utilisation, and storage. Specialised skills such as electrical and mechanical engineering, planning and connecting, and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA), among others, are foreseen as essential to meet the evolving demands of the renewables industry. Stephen Barrett, Director of Membership and Strategic Engagement at Energy & Utility Skills said: “A focus on renewables within the Power Generation Group allows us to support industry by establishing and upholding the necessary training standards, contributing to the UK’s training infrastructure, and addressing the growing demand for upskilling.” In a world where the transition to net zero is of critical importance, the focus on green skills by the Power Generation Group within the National Skills Academy for Power is a significant step forward. This move underscores Energy & Utility Skills commitment to facilitating the UK’s transition towards a more sustainable and greener energy future. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
The world’s longest land and subsea interconnector started commercial operations at the end of December last year (2023). National Grid’s new Viking Link electricity interconnector became operational this afternoon transporting power between the UK and Denmark. The link has a capacity of 1.4 GW and stretches for 475 miles under land and sea to join Bicker Fen substation in Lincolnshire with Revsing substation in southern Jutland, Denmark. The £1.7 billion project is a joint venture between National Grid and Danish System Operator, Energinet, and has the capacity to transport enough electricity for up to 2.5 million* UK homes, bringing over £500 million of cumulative savings for UK consumers over the next decade* due to cheaper imported power from Denmark. Construction on Viking Link, National Grid’s sixth interconnector, started in 2019, with more than fourmillion working hours spent to get to this point. National Grid’s interconnector business is run by National Grid Ventures (NGV), which operates outside of National Grid’s core regulated businesses in the UK and US. NGV develops, operates and invests in energy projects, technologies and partnerships to accelerate the development of our clean energy future. Viking Link will bring huge benefits for UK consumers including cheaper, lower carbon power and increased energy security as the UK can call on additional power from Denmark when needed. Initially, Viking Link will be operating at a capacity of 800MW before increasing up over time to 1.4GW. National Grid and Energinet will be working together to bring the asset up to full capacity over the coming year. In its first year of operation Viking Link is expected to save approximately 600,000 tonnes of carbon emissions – this is equivalent to taking roughly 280,000 cars off the road.* President of National Grid Ventures Katie Jackson said: “This record-breaking new link is a fantastic example of engineering and collaboration with our partner, Energinet. As we deploy more wind power to meet our climate and energy security targets, connections to our neighbouring countries will play a vital role increasing security of supply and reducing prices for consumers. “Stretching further across land and sea than any of our existing links, it connects the UK to clean, green Danish energy, improving security of supply and bringing huge carbon and cost savings for UK consumers.” Viking Link has a converter station on each end of the cable where the power is transformed into the correct frequency before being transported onto each country’s transmission systems. Principal Contractor Siemens Energy built the converter station in the UK while Energinet built the Danish converter station. Siemens Energy have designed, installed and commissioned the electrical assets on both sides. The HVDC offshore cable was manufactured and laid by Prysmian Group. The cable was laid on the seabed using a custom-made vessel The Leonardo Da Vinci which was then buried using Asso trenchers. Prysmian Group manufactured the HVDC land cable, which was installed by Balfour Beatty, the offshore section was manufactured and installed by Prysmian Group in the UK and the Danish land section was manufactured by NKT and installed by Monck. The UK land cable was made up of 118 sections stretching for 67km between Bicker Fen and Sutton-on-Sea where the subsea cable begins. It was connected to the UK’s National Transmission Network by National Grid Electricity Transmission at the existing Bicker Fen substation. Interconnectors enable the fast, flexible sharing of energy between countries, making them the perfect tool for managing the intermittent nature of renewable energy sources. The switch on was a proud moment for Managing Director of National Grid Interconnectors Rebecca Sedler. She said: “Viking Link is an achievement for both Denmark and the UK, and consumers in both countries will benefit from this infrastructure for many years to come. The hard work and collaboration of our teams, accounting for more than four million labour hours, highlights National Grid’s dedication to the UK’s clean energy transition.” National Grid launched the UK’s first interconnector (IFA) to France in 1986. Since then, it has built five more including a second link with France (IFA2) and further connections with The Netherlands (BritNed), Belgium (Nemo Link) and Norway (North Sea Link). Between 2020 and 2030, National Grid expects its interconnectors will have helped the UK to avoid around 100 million tonnes of carbon emissions and by 2030, 90% of the energy imported through the company’s interconnectors will be from zero carbon energy sources. Energy Security Secretary Claire Coutinho said: “Great news today as the new Viking Link interconnector starts to transport energy between Denmark and the UK, under the North Sea. “The 475-mile cable is the longest land and subsea electricity cable in the world and will provide cleaner, cheaper more secure energy to power up to 2.5 million homes in the UK. “It will help British families save £500 million on their bills over the next decade, while cutting emissions.” Earlier this year (2023) National Grid announced joint plans with TenneT for a new 1.8GW interconnector between the UK and The Netherlands, called LionLink. The link would not only join the two countries but also connect to offshore wind generation. LionLink would be the second link between the two countries and is expected to be operational in the early 2030s. A second new link called Nautilus, is also in the planning phase with the potential to connect with Belgium. Find out more about National Grid Interconnectors, how they work and their role in decarbonising the energy system. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Black & Veatch, a global leader in critical infrastructure solutions, shares insights into the rapidly evolving energy transition in a special video interview series filmed at COP 28 in Dubai. Watch here Youssef Merjaneh Senior Vice President & Managing Director – Europe, Middle East and Africa; and Deepa Poduval, Senior Vice President, Global Sustainability Leader and Global Advisory Leader; were filmed as part of the COP 28 Leadership Interviews, produced by TBD Media. The two leaders shared their global views on megatrends driving discourse at COP 28. Decarbonization, digitization and a drive for more reliable, resilient infrastructure are reshaping how governments, companies and communities achieve their long-term energy, water and other critical sustainability commitments. The interview touches on Black & Veatch’s own sustainability journey, which included brave but difficult commercial decisions. In 2020, Black & Veatch exited the new-build coal-fired power generation market, which was its largest business outside the United States, walking away from future revenue potential in order to align with its own decarbonization commitments. Black & Veatch has since replaced that revenue potential because this strategic action freed its talented workforce to focus on transforming the energy industry. Today the company is leading clients to deliver established decarbonization solutions such as hydrogen production and storage, battery energy storage, renewable energy, electric vehicle charging as well as delivering infrastructure to produce alternative fuels like green hydrogen, green ammonia and sustainable aviation fuels. Mirroring much dialogue throughout COP 28, the importance of achieving an affordable and fair energy transition was also underlined. Black & Veatch highlighted its work devising financial mechanism on the Climate Investment Fund’s Accelerating Coal Transition (ACT) investment program creating financial mechanism to enable the repurposing of coal facilities. In addition, two Black & Veatch projects across green hydrogen production and coal decommissioning were entered into the Energy Transition Changemakers, a COP28 UAE Presidency initiative. These are among the world’s most cutting edge and transformative energy transition projects. One project is enabling previous unattainable utility and industrial scale storage of renewable energy while the other is establishing a benchmark for how legacy coal infrastructure can be repurposed for renewable energy while creating positive economic and social impacts. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
RWE, the largest power generator in Wales, and Dragon LNG, one of the three UK LNG terminals providing energy security into the UK, have awarded a contract to AtkinsRéalis, a world-leading design, engineering and project management organisation, to carry out an engineering study for their collaborative project ‘MUST’ – Multi-Utility Services Transit – an infrastructure project connecting industry across the Milford Haven Waterway. The study will examine the environmental robustness of technical solutions and determine if any of the potential transit opportunities, including the transfer of residual process heat, export route for CO2and blue and green hydrogen, could reduce CO2 emissions on both the South and North side of the Haven. Depending on the outcome of the study, the opportunities that the MUST project could potentially provide are: Richard Little, Director of Pembroke Net Zero Centre, RWE commented: “This appointment demonstrates the commitment both RWE and Dragon have towards developing decarbonisation options for the whole of South Wales and is a key part of RWE’s Pembroke Net Zero Centre (PNZC), a major multi-technology decarbonisation initiative in South Wales.” Simon Ames, Managing Director, Dragon LNG and Dragon Energy commented: “We are excited to be entering into this important project phase with AtkinsRéalis who will provide recommendations for or against proceeding with project aspects. We continue to work with government and regulatory bodies to ensure we are in a position to progress forward once the results of the study are available in 2024”. Sarah Long – AtkinsRéalis Market Director for Net Zero Energy, said: “The MUST project is a great example of the innovation that will drive forward the decarbonisation of industry at scale and support the development of new technologies that will be vital in the net zero transition. We welcome the opportunity to build on our longstanding relationships with RWE and Dragon LNG and look forward to bringing our knowledge of transit, marine, environment and process plant integration to such a multi-faceted project.” MUST is a key deployment project of the South Wales Industrial Cluster, Dr Chris Williams, Head of Industrial Decarbonisation, Industry Wales, commented “SWIC is excited to see the MUST project develop as an example of industrial symbiosis (sharing), which will be a key element of industry in a net zero world. The sharing between and interconnecting of industries to limit waste and reduce emissions can unlock industrial sustainability, attract inward investment and help secure local jobs. MUST is an exemplar of the type of investment needed to support our industries on their net zero journey – as showcased in the SWIC Cluster Plan.” As a collaborative, flagship component of the South Wales Industrial Cluster (SWIC) Deployment Project, the MUST project would represent a step change in net zero infrastructure. The project is supported by an award from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI’s) Industrial Decarbonisation Challenge programme, which will provide key support in the engineering and design phases of the project. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Energy and technology group Octopus Energy has joined forces with The Hill Group, the award-winning five-star housebuilder and Clarion Housing Group, the largest social landlord in the country, in a landmark strategic partnership to revolutionise sustainable living in the UK. Hill and Octopus Energy are developing the nation’s most extensive ‘Zero Bills’ housing development, comprising 89 meticulously designed homes at Hollymead Square in Newport, Essex. Residents will pay no energy bills for a minimum of five years, guaranteed. Of the 89 total, 64 will be sold on the open market. The remaining 25 will be made available for affordable rent and shared ownership by Clarion Housing Group, the UK’s largest social housing provider. These will be the first completed ‘Zero Bills’ homes under affordable rent. ‘Zero Bills’ is a world-first smart proposition that allows customers to move into homes which are fully kitted out with green energy technology and with no energy bills. Following the success of a ‘Zero Bills’ pilot in Essex, Octopus Energy has now accredited close to 1,000 homes through contracts with other prominent developers. Accredited plots span affordable, social, and private rent, as well as private and shared ownership. Situated in an idyllic village location, this groundbreaking project at Hollymead Square encompasses an attractive collection of two to five-bedroom houses and two-bedroom bungalows. Each property at Hollymead Square will be equipped with cutting-edge low-carbon technology, including solar panels, high-quality insulation, heat pumps, and home storage batteries. Designed to exceed the energy requirements for each property, this high level of home energy technology is seamlessly integrated and optimised by Octopus’ advanced tech platform, Kraken, to result in zero bills for homeowners. Octopus Energy’s ambitious goal of delivering 50,000 ‘Zero Bills’ homes across the UK and beyond by 2025 aligns with Hill’s strategic goal to deliver net-zero carbon homes by 2030. Hollymead Square is the first opportunity for the partners to work together to develop and provide net-zero housing and pioneer the way forward for a greener, more sustainable future. Construction of the new homes is underway, and the sales launch is due to take place on 20th January, with the first homes expected to complete in Spring 2024. Michael Cottrell, Zero Bills Homes Director at Octopus Energy, comments: “This partnership with The Hill Group is the first giant leap in transforming the way we live in our homes and consume energy. This will also mark both the biggest ‘Zero Bills’ development in the UK and the first with affordable rent options with Clarion. This partnership pioneers a future where sustainable living is the standard for everybody, no matter their situation.” Greg Hill, Deputy Chief Executive at The Hill Group, says, “We are excited to be working in partnership with Octopus Energy to provide our customers with the largest residential ‘Zero Bills’ development in the UK. The new homes at Hollymead Square in Newport will provide a blueprint for future sustainable housing and mark the start of our fruitful strategic partnership to deliver new homes complete with cutting-edge low-carbon technology that enable zero energy bills.” Richard Cook, Group Director of Development at Clarion Housing Group, says, “We are thrilled to be partnering with Octopus Energy and Hill Group on such an innovative project. It’s crucial that we cut emissions and cut bills for homes of all tenures. I am proud that Clarion residents will be among the first to benefit from a Zero Bills home. To find out more information about the ‘Zero Bills’ homes available at Hollymead Square, please contact Hill at 0808 168 7900 or visit www.hill.co.uk. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Vital Energi are working with speciality chemical manufacturer, Solenis, to reduce the carbon consumption at its Bradford site through a new 17-year partnership to upgrade and operate the site’s energy centre, futureproofing the site’s production capabilities. Solenis is always looking for ways to run its sites more sustainably, enhancing growth while decreasing environmental impact. Vital Energi will upgrade the existing combined heat and power (CHP) system and install two new efficient steam boilers. A new control system will be installed to ensure efficient and reliable energy generation. Once the construction process is complete, Vital Energi will operate and maintain the energy centre under an Energy Services Agreement (ESA). This agreement is targeted to optimise availability and energy use guaranteeing the projected carbon and financial savings for the next 15 years and setting the foundations for further carbon reduction initiatives. Key members from Solenis, Vital Energi and consultancy JRP Solutions, who supported Solenis, came together to mark the start of the ground works on site. They were joined by local councillor, Sarah Ferriby. Ashley Malin, Managing Director at Vital Energi, said, “We’re really pleased to be adding to our growing number of industrial clients, helping forge the pathway to net zero for Solenis and improving energy supply resilience across their site for the next 15 years. As well as the fundamental works on site, we’re also delighted to be delivering a host of social value initiatives which will benefit Solenis employees, the local community, and beyond.” David Calder, Site Manager at Solenis added, “Entering into a partnership with Vital Energi is an important step for Solenis on our journey towards Net Zero and ongoing sustainability for the site.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Leading Net Zero Consultancy, The Consultus International Group, has announced bringing utility infrastructure management division back to the fore, as a standalone business unit. Formerly lacking a striking identity, Consultus’ Utility Infrastructure Management area of the businesses has rebranded as ‘Connectus’, arming the division with its own individuality and place in the utility infrastructure landscape, spanning across many sectors, and bringing with it time-served experience, delivery by a highly knowledgeable team. Although the Connectus name is new, the team come with a wealth of experience in multi-utility connections across manufacturing, retail, healthcare, leisure and hospitality, to name but a few. Connectus focus on delivering all aspects of connection, disconnection and relocation when it comes to industrial, commercial and residential developments that can take the pressure off any development and multi-site scheme. Their goal is to become a project manager’s first port of call when considering business utilities, by offering ‘turn-key’ solutions, through strategic decision-making. Whether it’s electricity, gas, water, telecoms/ICT, sewerage or other utilities, Connectus make themselves accountable, for the service, and speed up the process. Connectus have carried out work for property developers Patrick Properties, who commented – “Consultus (now rebranded to Connectus Utilities) has saved us a lot of time and hassle. They perform procurement contract negotiations for us, resulting in major savings; and by heeding their advice we have also avoided large penalty payments. We know that they are doing a fantastic job and therefore trust them implicitly”. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Dynamic scheduling software specialist FLS – FAST LEAN SMART has won a field service planning and scheduling contract for E.ON, one of the UK’s leading energy providers. E.ON is a leading installer of energy efficiency solutions including smart meters, solar panels, air source heat pumps, batteries and electric vehicle chargers. The FLS VISITOUR scheduling solution will improve efficiency and service for more than 1,000 engineers in E.ON’s Smart Field Connections team, tasked with completing 600,000 installations a year in addition to service appointments. With more than 5.5m customers, E.ON is a long-term user of scheduling software and benefited from this experience when selecting a next generation solution. Key to selection was also compatibility with its Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service solution. Lee Durham, Head of Technology, UK Solutions at E.ON, said: “Delivering net zero and creating a future energy system that is smart, personalised and sustainable demands engagement with customers on a level never seen before. E.ON is one of the leading installers of smart devices and low carbon solutions in the UK, meaning we need a system to schedule appointments in the most efficient and convenient way for our field agents and, obviously, for our customers.” “We wanted a mature solution with proven capability and integration with Dynamics 365 in order to achieve maximum value and to meet our timescale to be live within a few months.” Selection of FLS VISITOUR FLS VISITOUR will add critical value to E.ON by delivering enhanced real-time planning and scheduling capabilities. Twenty years of development and hundreds of customers across multiple industries has led to exceptional performance and flexibility that will enable E.ON to deploy automation and processes desired, and self-manage future configuration changes. Features of FLS VISITOUR that enable the most accurate routing include AI predictive traffic based driving speeds and appointment booking with the unique FLS PowerOpt algorithm to calculate the relative cost of each possible timeslot through real-time optimisation, not just white space filling in the diary. The result is more efficient routes that cut driving time and mileage and significantly reduce carbon footprints. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
With storm season in full force, SP Energy Networks is investigating the potential of using artificial intelligence to help predict faults in the electricity network ahead of severe weather hitting In a UK first, SP Energy Networks is trialling AI technology to better pinpoint potential faults on the electricity network caused by severeweather and help ensure equipment and engineers are on hand to tackle problems – even before they happen. The revolutionary £5 million Predict4Resilience project will use AI technology to predict where faults could occur up-to seven days in advance, allowing the electricity network operator to mobilise engineers and equipment to shorten the time power supplies could be disrupted. By using AI, historic weather and fault data along with network asset and landscape information are used to develop machine learning models. Combined with real-time weather forecasting, Predict4Resilience will inform SP Energy Networks’ control room about where the weather will hit and what damage it’s expected with much more accurately than ever before. This will enable the control room to mobilise teams and send them out ahead of time, ready to restore power should a fault occur. This innovative technology adds to SP Energy Networks’ storm response and will ultimately allow the network provider to respond more quickly to power cuts and more efficiently target resources ahead of storms. Guy Jefferson, Chief Operating Officer at SP Energy Networks, said: “Ahead of a severe weather event we mobilise hundreds of engineers, vehicles, and generators alongside thousands of pieces of other materials so we are ready to restore power as quickly and as safely as possible. “We know the disruption severe weather can bring to our customers and we are constantly investing in our network and investigating new technologies that could be used to keep this disruption to a minimum. “Projects like Predict4Resilience offer us another tool to help inform our decision making during a storm and help to reduce the time it takes us to restore power, minimising the impact of severe weather on our customers and communities even further. “Through collaboration with Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks Distribution to expand our testing area, the trial phase of this project will provide us with robust learnings to meet our ambition of rolling this technology out across the UK.” The leading network provider is working with partners to roll out the technology across the UK, including The University of Glasgow, who are developing the AI methods that underpin this new forecasting capability; Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks Distribution, which will use the findings to test a different regulatory area, resulting in a wider scale area being tested, and Sia Partners, a global consultancy who bring the technical capabilities to build the software and its supporting infrastructure, as well as its business expertise to ensure this technology can be rolled-out across all network operators. The project secured £4.5million funding from the Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) from energy regulator Ofgem and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), which supports ambitious and innovative projects to accelerate the transition to net zero emissions. Sebastien Gerber, Head of Data Science and AI, UK and Ireland, at Sia Partners, said: “Sia Partners will continue its work from the previous phase of the project where it led the development of the solution prototype and built the supporting business case to secure further funding from Ofgem. “Our multidisciplinary team brings expertise in energy networks operations, data science, data engineering and UX / UI design to provide the end-to-end capability to deliver a software solution fit for all DNOs, as well as any adjacent sectors who suffer weather-related interruptions. “We’re proud to play such an integral role in Predict4Resilience and help create a more resilient network that minimises disruption and stress for customers, particularly for the vulnerable. We anticipate Predict4Resilience will bring about a range of significant financial, social and environmental benefits to the networks and their customers.” Dr Jethro Browell, Senior Lecturer in Statistics at the University of Glasgow says, “We are excited to be working with a great team of partners to make our electricity networks more resilient in the face of climate change. This is a fantastic example of how the mathematical sciences can impact our everyday lives for the better.” SP Energy Networks serves more than 3 million homes and businesses across the UK, who can benefit from this investment, ensuring a resilient and reliable power supply. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Hundreds of energy innovators are set to descend on Liverpool on 31 October and 1 November, for this year’s Energy Innovation Summit. We are pleased to announce that Andrew Bowie MP will deliver this year’s keynote remarks. Minister Bowie, whose ministerial portfolio includes energy networks and nuclear, will join the event to discuss the latest developments for innovation in the sector and engage with attendees, seeing sector innovation up close and first hand. The Energy Innovation Summit has been co-produced between Energy Networks Association (ENA), Ofgem, Innovate UK (part of UK Research and Innovation) and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. This year it will examine how innovation is vital for accelerating progress in technology supporting decarbonisation, increasing the ‘democratisation’ of the energy system and helping ensure industry can best help consumers in vulnerable situations. It will invite leading energy industry innovators from around the world to debate the challenges here in the UK, as well as ask the big questions about the remaining gaps in our net zero planning that require innovation to close, if we are to achieve the government’s net zero targets. The event will also include a full range of high-profile speakers across two days of innovation-focused discussions, networking and in-depth practical insights into the latest schemes. Jonathan Brearley, CEO of Ofgem said: “Reaching our goal of a decarbonised power system by 2035 will mean seeking out innovative solutions that will deliver a resilient, reliable, and more affordable energy system for households across the UK. “This year’s summit will be a great opportunity to discuss how we can develop the technologies needed to make this a reality so we can transition to a net zero energy system at the least cost to consumers.” David Richardson, Head of Innovation – Ofgem Strategic Innovation Fund, Innovate UK, said: “The energy networks will be central in the next phase of the transformation of our energy system. The Summit offers a chance for people working in all corners of the industry to actively engage in conversations about shaping our net zero future in a way which works for all users of our national infrastructure. “During the event, we’ll hear valuable perspectives, including those supported by the Ofgem Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF), which brings together energy networks and innovators to reimagine energy systems in a way which will support achieving our net zero goals. We look forward to hearing the Government perspective from Minister Bowie and encourage all others to join the conversation too.” Dan Clarke, Head of Innovation, ENA said:“Rarely has the UK’s energy sector been more focused on accelerating innovation. To reach the government’s net zero goals we need to apply successful innovation from across the UK and beyond, but we also need clear insights into the roadmap ahead. We look forward to engaging with the Minister and getting a clearer vision of the future of UK energy innovation.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
