Power
New test centre to stimulate HVDC use
Work has started on a new technology centre situated in Cumbernauld that will test and de-risk the use of high voltage direct current (HVDC) on the electricity network in Great Britain.
Power
Domestic storage will dominate by 2024
Behind-the-meter energy storage will overtake grid-scale storage as the largest market segment in 2021 as the result of a surge in storage capacity.
Power
DSR is ‘fanciful nonsense’, says union
GMB has slammed National Grid as being “naively complacent” over its intention to use demand-side response (DSR) to avoid blackouts, and has called for the company to be stripped of its system operator role.
Power
Fit for digital
Transmission substations are going through a radical evolution as digital technologies take hold, says ABB’s Danny Lyonnette.
Power
EVs: a car park of storage
Electric vehicles are being hailed as the mobile storage solution, but power needs to flow both ways.
Power
Storage sweeps board winning 8 EFR contracts worth £65.95m
National Grid has awarded eight contracts worth a total of £65.95 million to energy storage companies to balance system frequency in the UK energy system.
Gas
Smart energy dynamics: the need for new architecture
Steel yourself for some tough decisions in the next five to ten years says Duncan Botting as concludes a series of articles on smart energy dynamics.
Power
National Grid denied request to recoup black start costs
National Grid will be liable to pay £17.7 million towards the cost of a black start contract signed with Drax, after Ofgem denied its request to recover full the amount.
Power
WPD to reveal generation mix to customers
Western Power Distribution is to provide its customers with more information on the generation mix of electricity supplied in their area to improve customer relations and boost engagement with demand side response.
Power
Editor’s Weekly: Anticipating a call for evidence
Ofgem and BEIS's call for evidence on the future of smart energy systems is an important opportunity to shape the future of system operation, says Network's editor Jane Gray.
Power
ENW prepares for winter with new scalable contact centre
Electricity North West has gone live with a new cloud-based contact centre which will help it scale up customer interaction in response to extreme weather events.
Power
Shortage of grid contracts dampening storage market
Oversubscription for National Grid’s Enhanced Frequency Response service will result in uncertainty for a large proportion of battery developers when the first contracts are awarded on 26 August, Smartest Energy has warned.
Power
Government updates Apprenticeship Levy plans
The government has published new information on the practicalities of the apprenticeship levy, which takes effect in April 2017.
Gas
Mixed blessings: What does the rise of the EV mean for electricity networks?
The future of transport will definitely include electric vehicles, but is the rise of the EV a blessing or a curse for electricity networks?
Power
Achieving EV charging consensus
Gill Nowell, Smart EV project manager at EA Technology, says standardisation is key to control charging.
Power
Domestic storage could change design rules for retrofit PV
The design rules for retrofit photovoltaic installations in social housing schemes could be changed to take into account domestic energy storage.
Power
WPD to expand connection options through storage trial
Western Power Distribution (WPD) is to explore alternative connections for storage which could also give customers more connection options.
Power
WPD to develop prototype to aid EV connections
Western Power Distribution is to develop a prototype device which will increase capacity on low voltage networks and optimise connections for electric vehicles, distributed generation and energy storage.
Gas
Low carbon security of supply: the case for CCS is building
The government's pause for thought on Hinkley should trigger a rethink about support for CCS too, says George Day.
Power
UKPN to tackle electric shock risk through major survey
UK Power Networks is aiming to tackle the risk of electric shocks to the public through a major survey of its low voltage electricity distribution network.
Power
SPEN to cut costs by extending life of concrete assets
Scottish Power Transmission is to cut power outage times and costs by extending the life of concrete assets.
Gas
On site with Enel: system control
Network visited Italian distribution system operator Enel in Milan to see the future of smart grid control.
Gas
Alan Whitehead: the smart grid revolution
Network interviews former shadow energy minister Alan Whitehead on why smart grids are non-negotiable.
Power
Editor’s weekly: a plot twist for Hinkley
Just when we thought it was drawing to a close, the ongoing Hinkley Point C story has opened a new chapter. Network editor Jane Gray responds.
Power
Notice of Conformity awarded for new switchgear tech
The Energy Networks Association has granted a Notice of Conformity to Schneider Electric for its medium voltage Premset Outdoor switchgear.
Power
ABB to supply flexible power link to connect distribution grids
ABB is to deploy a 20MW flexible power link to connect separate distribution grids to increase capacity.
Power
SHET to cut power failures through pole monitoring
Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission is to use sensors to detect movement in poles supporting overhead power lines in order to avoid power outages in remote areas.
Heat
National Grid cuts energy use ahead of trainee surge
System operator National Grid has installed a series of energy saving measures at its training centre in Eakring ahead of the surge in trainees expected in the coming years.
Gas
Sensing the future: SGN’s Real-Time Networks project
SGN has progressed the findings of its "Opening up the gas market" project and is applying new network monitoring approaches in Kent
Gas
Changing industry gender ratios is easier said than done
The energy industry is failing to significantly increase the proportion or accelerate the progression of female staff. Network explores the problem.
Heat
Low Carbon invests in district heating to develop replicable finance model
Renewable energy investment company Low Carbon has invested in district heating consortium Energy Networks (Europe) (ENE) to fund a scalable development and financing model for district heat networks.