Consumers face ‘incoherent patchwork’ of energy policies

Energy policy must be overhauled to reflect the growing involvement of consumers in an increasingly decentralised energy system, a new report has urged.

The Association for Decentralised Energy (ADE) says policies have frequently been designed without considering the perspective of consumers, resulting in an “incoherent patchwork” of overlapping, poorly coordinated and confusing measures.

“Energy policy was built in silos at a time when the system was centralised and with few players, but this approach no longer works when thousands of businesses and millions of homes are vital to making a low-carbon energy system a reality,” said ADE director Tim Rotheray.

“Those who try and navigate the system and take energy-related decisions – to invest in energy efficiency, to move to lower carbon heating or renewable power generation – often find a complex puzzle of choices and no overall steer to guide their decision-making.”

The report, titled Solving the Energy Puzzle for Users, calls for consumers to be put at the heart of a new policy and regulatory framework.

It says consumers should be free to compete to provide services to the energy system and rewarded fairly for doing so. They should be given clear information about what they can do and what the system needs from them.

The report also recommends a focus on “outcomes, not outputs”.

Rotheray added: “To deliver a system where energy users are able to participate in and benefit from the transition to a low carbon economy, there has to be a re-think about how policy and regulation are designed.

“The future system must meet users’ needs, be seen to be fair and re-build user trust.

“This vision, where energy customers are at the heart of the energy system and its policy framework, is a vital part of delivering energy system decarbonisation.”