News
Gas
Ofgem awards £44.6m to six smart grid projects
Ofgem has awarded £44.6 million of funding to six projects aimed at developing smarter energy grids.
Technology & Operations
Moody’s: DNOs will be winners of energy storage boom
Distribution Network Operators will be among the "key beneficiaries" of a boom in battery technology as falling prices allow DNOs to cut their costs and boost their credit quality.
Gas
North-south divide driving transmission investment
National Grid has identified potential network capacity deficits arising from increasing north-to-south electricity flows in Scotland and England.
Gas
North-south divide driving transmission investment
National Grid has identified potential network capacity deficits arising from increasing north to south electricity flows in Scotland and England.
Gas
National Grid: Gas network must be ‘more flexible’ to deal with volatility
The gas transmission network will need to become "more flexible" to deal with the growing volatility of supply and demand, National Grid has said in a new report.
Strategy & Management
WPD cuts supply interruption time by 49%
Western Power Distribution (WPD) has cut the average time its customers are without power by 49% on the level in 2011/12, beating its target of 23% set by Ofgem for the entire eight-year price control period.
Customers
RedT sells Gen 2 storage machine to University of Strathclyde
Energy storage technology company RedT has sold a Gen 2 energy storage machine to the University of Strathclyde.
Power
Substation monitoring system wins Innovate UK grant
A remote monitoring system for electricity distribution substations which undercuts the price of alternative solutions by more than ten times has been awarded funding by Innovate UK.
Gas
National Grid opens pioneering BioSNG plant
National Grid Gas Distribution and technology partners have officially opened a green gas plant in Swindon which will provide 22GWh of energy a year.
Gas
Developing domestic hydrogen appliances ‘needs strong policy direction’
Developing domestic appliances such as boilers and cookers that use 100% hydrogen instead of natural gas is possible with "strong policy direction" from government.
Heat
Smart meters system for district heating launched
A new smart metering system for district heating has been launched to enable housing associations and local authorities to solve debt management issues.
Gas
Green gas could heat majority of homes in Britain, says Ecotricity
Ecotricity has revealed new plans that could heat 97% of homes in Britain using green gas made from grass.
Technology & Operations
Schneider Electric launches EcoStruxure Grid
Schneider Electric has launched a new open internet-of-things enabled framework to enable distribution networks to realise innovation at every level of the grid.
Power
RedT completes Gen 1 energy storage market seeding phase
Energy storage technology company RedT has completed its Gen 1 market seeding phase, proving its 40kWh and 240kWh machines in the field.
Power
SSEN invests £150m to prepare networks for winter
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) has so far invested £150 million to strengthen its network in the north of Scotland and central southern England ahead of winter.
Power
Northern Powergrid invests £14m in smart technology
Northern Powergrid has invested £14 million in new technology which will allow it to locate the cause of a power cut and restore electricity supplies more efficiently.
Policy & Regulation
Smart and flexible energy consultation opens
Ofgem and the Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) have issued a call for evidence on approaches to establishing a smart and flexible power system in the UK.
Technology & Operations
NGET launches project to optimise OHL fittings data
National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET) has launched a project to maximise the utilisation of overhead line fittings condition information to enable better long-term planning and investment.
Technology & Operations
NGET aims to increase OHL river crossing height
National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET) is aiming to increase the clearance height of overhead lines crossing river spans by five meters by installing semi tension insulators.
Strategy & Management
Pettigrew defends EFR contracts
National Grid chief executive John Pettigrew has defended the contracts recently signed with energy storage providers for Enhanced Frequency Response, in the face of criticism that the contract prices are too low.
Heat
Sheffield district heat network refurbished with polymer
Pipework at two district heat networks in Sheffield dating back to the 1970s have been replaced with polymer pipework after a series of leaks.
Power
Schneider Electric launches modular feeder automation device
Schneider Electric has launched a new integrated digital monitoring and control device for both medium voltage and low voltage electrical distribution networks.
Technology & Operations
Nissan installs vehicle-to-grid technology at Cranfield research centre
Car manufacturer Nissan has fitted its research and development facilities in Cranfield with its innovative vehicle-to-grid (V2G) concept, marking the first time the technology has been installed at the carmaker's facilities in Europe.
Gas
ETI sets out multi-vector energy plan
A new report from the Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) has laid out possible strategies for achieving an integrated approach to energy system planning.
Customers
ENW to automate 100% of LV network by 2018
Electricity North West says it will connect all of its service points a new Network Management System in order to gain complete visibility of its low voltage network.
Gas
Smart metering is ‘missed opportunity’ for gas safety
The Gas Industry Safety Group (GISG) has said it is “particularly disappointed” that the “once in a lifetime opportunity” to improve the safety of customers offered by the smart meter rollout is being wasted.
Power
Murphy to support Siemens on Nemo contract
Engineering and construction firm J Murphy & Sons has been appointed by Siemens to help deliver the Nemo Link interconnector for National Grid.
Power
Plans unveiled for ‘biggest new power line since electricity network was built’
National Grid has unveiled plans for “the biggest new power line project since the electricity network was built”.
People & Skills
23% rise in apprenticeship applications for WPD
A social media based recruitment campaign has helped Western Power Distribution boost applications to its apprenticeship opportunities by almost a quarter.
Policy & Regulation
Ofgem “pleased” but “not delighted” with network innovation
A senior partner at Ofgem has said that the regulator is not delighted with the outcomes of the network innovation funds.
Gas
Atkins to lead hydrogen storage scoping
The Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) has appointed engineering consultancy Atkins to lead a study which will identify sites suitable for the storage of hydrogen gas in the UK.