Heat networks: where is innovation needed?
Necessity is the mother of innovation: our best ideas often come out of our shortcomings and the need to change.
Heat networks: where is innovation needed? Read More »
Blog
Heat loss headaches
Losses that go unchecked can easily double the cost of heat on the network, but while everyone agrees it’s hugely important to limit losses, the approach we currently take to heat loss is damaging the performance of our networks. Let me explain.
Heat loss headaches Read More »
Heat networks and the trilemma
When politicians talk about the ‘energy trilemma’ (carbon emissions, security of energy supply, energy costs) facing the UK, most people focus on electricity and, more specifically, on “keeping the lights on”.
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Heat networks bottleneck
The Government has serious ambitions for district heating, or heat networks as it calls them. In fact it has two billion pounds worth of ambition, which is the amount of investment it wants over the decade to construct over 200 schemes being sponsored by local authorities and property developers. That’s enough heat for 400,000 homes and probably a trebling of the current heat network capacity that has been built up over decades. Will there be enough people with the right skills and experience to build design, build and operate the new heat networks? Are we training enough people to fill the gaps?
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Heat networks: the post-Brexit energy solution?
The energy landscape is now far different to how it was just a couple of months ago.
Heat networks: the post-Brexit energy solution? Read More »
Health and safety – how we’re getting better
The UK electricity industry has a longstanding ambition to be a world leader in the field of health and safety. It is a commitment that comes from the heart, because anyone who has worked for an organisation that has been involved in a serious accident remembers forever the impact on their own and other people’s lives.
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Electric vehicles: who should pay?
Previously I have talked about the popularity of Electric Vehicles (EVs) and how the industry is preparing for their increasing numbers. Whether driven by government policy, technical advances in battery technology or just through consumer choice, all forecasts suggest that their numbers will rise dramatically in the next few years.
Electric vehicles: who should pay? Read More »
Don’t care, wont care
Do we want energy system transformation because it’s what’s right for consumers? Or do we want it because it’s a really interesting engineering project?
Don’t care, wont care Read More »
Delivering demand response
Reducing peak loads is a critical challenge for the future of the UK’s energy network. Currently, domestic power usage is responsible for two-thirds of peak demand. This drives up infrastructure costs and peak prices as networks face reducing capacity margin, wholesale price spikes and higher balancing costs.
Delivering demand response Read More »