Driving innovation to meet the recommendations of NESO’s Clean Power 2030 Report

Towards the end of last year, the National Energy System Operator (NESO) released its Clean Power 2030 report, laying out pathways for how Great Britain could achieve a clean power system by the end of the decade. 

The report recognises that clean power by 2030 is a significant challenge, and success will require multiple elements to deliver simultaneously, at pace, and without error or weakening supply chains. But the overall message is that, together, this is something we can achieve. 

NESO makes recommendations in a number of areas, and as an energy supplier committed to sustainability we are already addressing some of them through various products, projects, and pilots. Here, then, are some of the report’s key suggestions, the innovative ways we’re tackling them from our position as a supplier, and what the Government and other stakeholders can do to fold these efforts into the overall goal of a clean power system by 2030. 

Key suggestions from NESO Clean Power 2030 

Flexibility  

One of the key priorities listed by the report is flexibility. Because renewable energy sources such as wind and solar are dependent on the weather, which is variable, we will need greater flexibility in both supply and demand to make new energy work. 

According to the report, the required demand-side flexibility will mostly be provided by helping customers digitise and automate aspects of their consumption, for instance through the smart meters that we, like other suppliers, are continuing to install in homes and businesses. However, energy storage will also play a significant role in bringing more flexibility to both supply and demand by storing renewable power when it’s abundant and dispatching it when needed. 

Not only are we contributing to the country’s energy storage capacity through projects such as the two 230-megawatt facilities in which we’re investing at the site of the former Uskmouth coal-fired power station in Newport, South Wales, we are also driving collaborations and research with climate finance companies such as Seagrass to help support future projects. But it doesn’t stop there, as part of our 15-year partnership with Coventry City Council, we are currently running a pilot to install batteries in people’s homes at no upfront cost to prove that this is an effective way to bring down bills, build more demand-side flexibility into the energy system, and help balance the grid. 

Network expansion 

There is no question that as Britain continues to electrify its energy system there will be a need to upgrade national grid infrastructure. There is also no question that this will require significant investment. While upgrades are inevitable, we can reduce some of the demand – and energy costs – by working to further decentralise the country’s energy generation. One way of doing this is through establishing Energy Sharing Communities. 

By removing network costs for locally-generated solar power, we can incentivise public buildings and businesses to install solar PV on their unused rooftops, meet their own energy needs with clean solar power, and sell surplus to local households. Because these local energy sharing networks would not rely on the national grid, establishing them nationwide could significantly reduce the need for expensive upgrades, taking some pressure off one aspect of the clean power mission. 

Backing Offshore Wind 

The report claims that “there is no path to clean power without mass deployment of offshore wind, together with onshore wind and solar,” and while we believe that solar PV can become an important piece of the country’s energy portfolio through large-scale farms and energy sharing communities, the British climate means wind will always be especially important. As  one of the largest suppliers in the UK, we currently have Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) with many wind generators ranging from single-turbine operations to huge offshore farms that produce terrawatts of power. We were one of the earlier drivers of wind generation in the UK, are proud of our heritage in this area, and are committed to supporting it into the future.  

Working at pace and flexibly for a clean power system 

The NESO report concludes the next step will be for the government to reflect on the advice given before setting out its own plan for clean power by 2030, and there is a special emphasis on pace and flexibility. 

We agree with this. The sooner government lays out its plans, the more confidence industry will have, and the more reliable supply chains will be. But this is not to say there isn’t room for flexibility in the future. As new challenges, opportunities, and technologies arise in the coming years, we must all be prepared to update our approaches in line with the evidence. This is exactly why we’re working on pilots for innovative solutions such as energy sharing and no-upfront-cost batteries for the financially vulnerable – because the more we innovate and spread the load of the energy transition, the more likely we are to achieve clean power together by 2030.