P4P hosted the National Energy System Operator (NESO) in parliament yesterday to give Peers the opportunity to find out more about the role of this new independent body that will sit at the heart of the energy system.
NESO was officially launched on 1st October 2024 to oversee the country’s energy systems as they transition to net zero and will advise the government and regulator Ofgem on how climate targets can be met.
The session explored NESO’s first official report to the government on achieving clean power by 2030.
Although NESO advised it will be challenging to reach clean power by 2030, they believe it can be achieved based on projects already in the pipeline and by moving quickly to make decisions that can unlock policy levers across areas such as planning, consenting and skills.
The analysis presented in its advice to government estimates the cost of a clean power system to be roughly the same as today, and to get there NESO estimates it will require an annual average investment of £40bn by 2030 largely met through private capital, and any infrastructure paid through energy bills (such as network infrastructure) will be recouped over the 40-year lifetime of the assets.
The briefing also looked at the opportunities for total system costs to end up lower than they are today if we can build a smarter and more flexible energy system. For example, through greater deployment of storage assets on the system and incentivising consumers and businesses to engage in demand management, to make the system more efficient and reduce the need for additional generation and network assets.
Although Peers were left confident that with sustained effort a clean power system by 2030 can be achieved, NESO also made it clear that this will only take us to ‘basecamp’. This is because we will see electricity demand growth of 30-40% between 2030-35 that will require further years of upskilling and delivering infrastructure at pace.
You can read NESO’s advice to government here: Clean Power 2030 - Advice on achieving clean power for Great Britain by 2030
댓글