October 25, 2024
What is NESO – and why does it matter?
A new National Energy System Operator is here in an unprecedented shake-up of the energy industry. After decades of private companies running the UK’s energy provision, the government has decided that it’s time to take a little more control. On October 1st, the government launched the National Energy System Operator, or NESO. NESO came into formation when the government paid £630 million to National Grid, who previously had responsibility for running the nation’s energy systems
September 20, 2024
How the new government plans to lower energy bills
The incoming Labour government pledged to lower energy bills. But given that energy is a marketplace, what’s the plan? During the recent general election campaign, a key part of the Labour Party’s manifesto was cutting household energy bills. Now they’re in government, they have to deliver on that pledge. But it’s going to be a challenge. There’s no quick fix for high energy prices, which are the product of a marketplace over which the UK
August 16, 2024
Can the UK government meet its solar and wind power targets?
New analysis puts the government behind schedule for solar and wind generation. But solutions are out there. The latest projections from energy research company Cornwall Insight state that the UK government is well behind its targets for solar and wind power generation, which is part of its plan to decarbonise the power grid by 2030. This is bad news for the new Labour government and its flagship energy policy, but help could be at hand
July 30, 2024
Smart meters overseas
Each country is at a different stage of smart meter adoption. Let’s grab our passports and find out how other countries are managing the transition to smart meters. We’ve discussed the ups and downs of the UK’s smart meter rollout many times. Due to be completed in 2019 but still in operation, the rollout has been beset by technical and budgetary problems, as well as a global pandemic that slowed it down. But how does
June 28, 2024
A £60 billion power-up for National Grid
It’s all change at National Grid this month with a significant cash injection and some organisational change. In the UK, we use the term ‘national grid’ for the electricity transmission network. It’s the infrastructure that gets the energy from the power station into the plug sockets in our homes. However, behind the national grid, there’s National Grid, a multi-billion pound, multinational company. National Grid, headquartered in London but with additional operations in the US, is