Strategy, policy & regulation

Editor's Picks

Ofwat sets ‘very problematic’ revised PR24 schedule

Ofwat may not make its final rulings on water companies' £100 billion business plans until the end of January 2025, just two months before the next asset management period begins. Senior water company figures told Utility Week that the revised timetable is "very problematic" and "borderline ridiculous".

1 year ago

ESO may ‘snatch defeat from the jaws of victory’ over DFS penalty proposals

1 year ago

Labour promises ‘much tougher’ regulation of energy market

1 year ago

Ofgem to extend bad debt support provision in price cap

1 year ago

Let’s be pragmatic – not dogmatic – about the future of gas

1 year ago

Latest

Ofgem considers tweaks to debt allowances after PPM pause

2 years ago

SSEN forecasts 1,300% increase in heat pumps by 2030

2 years ago

Grid connection delays are ‘unacceptable’, minister admits

Long waits for developers to secure grid connections are “unacceptable”, energy ministers have said during DESNZ question time. Energy secretary Grant Shapps also said the introduction of a cut price social tariff for low income customers “could be very helpful”.

2 years ago

Long-duration storage is the next frontier in the UK’s energy storage leadership

2 years ago

Government urged to review planning rules for water projects

2 years ago

REGOs have ‘outlived original purpose’

2 years ago

NIC calls for new unit to oversee planning overhaul

A new top-level, Whitehall taskforce should be established to oversee the infrastructure planning regime, a government-commissioned review has urged. The National Infrastructure Commission also calls for environmental impact assessments to be overhauled and for greater data sharing between similar projects.

2 years ago

Energy suppliers should absorb bad debt, consumers say

Britons “instinctively oppose” the force-fitting of prepayment meters (PPMs) as a debt recovery measure, Ofgem’s review into the practice concludes. Instead, British energy consumers believe that suppliers should absorb debt within their perceived profits. The consumer research was released alongside a new code of practice which tightens the rules on forced PPM installations.

2 years ago

Lords defy government over Ofgem net zero duty

The House of Lords has defied the government and backed calls for Ofgem to be given a statutory obligation to meet the UK's 2050 net zero emissions target. By 208 votes to 182, peers backed a Labour-tabled amendment to the government’s Energy Security Bill, which would incorporate within the energy regulator’s general duties a "specific requirement to have regard to meeting the UK’s net zero emissions target".

2 years ago

Firms face ‘severe’ fines for missing smart meter targets

2 years ago

PPM code ‘necessary’ but bad debt fears mount

2 years ago

Ovo to end using REGOs

2 years ago

DCC network ‘clearly not up to scratch’

2 years ago

National Grid: We’re not averse to competition

2 years ago

Overhaul of CfD auctions tabled

2 years ago

Weekend Press: High costs and uncertainties cast a chill over Britain’s heat pump market

2 years ago

Norway links rejected for interconnector pilot

2 years ago

Water companies seem resigned to long-disputed licence changes

2 years ago

Call for smart meter mandate to complete rollout

2 years ago

Looming copper crisis must spark connection rethink

Predicted copper shortage have led to calls for alternative, more efficient ways of hooking up renewable energy schemes to avoid project delays, soaring costs and generation shortages. Former Ofgem senior partner Maxine Frerk told Utility Week that the regulator needs to do more to drive down electrical leaks, while Dominic Quennell, CEO of Enertechnos, has called for the rollout of an alternative cabling system.

2 years ago