As a principal partner for next week’s UN climate conference in Glasgow, National Grid wants to show that decarbonisation is possible with the technologies and opportunities we have today, if we have the right policies, regulations and investments in place. Utility Week speaks to the company’s chief sustainability officer, Duncan Burt, about his hopes and fears for the event and how we can tackle the public awareness gap around what net zero means.

COP26

What do you want to hear from the conference?

We want to hear strong commitments and alignment from the major economies including the US, China, the EU and wider G20 on the pace of change and action being taken during this decade to cut carbon emissions. That means a faster transition to electric vehicles, an end to burning coal, investing in renewable energy and financial support to help nations tackle the impacts of climate change.

What should the legacy of COP26 be?

There is widespread consensus that COP26 is a huge opportunity to make strides on climate change, with the potential to rally the world on the biggest issue of our time and bend the curve to start reducing global emissions. It is just one step in time; what we achieve before and after will be just as important in dictating the pace at which we decarbonise and reach a clean energy future.

Is your company actively participating in COP26?

National Grid is a Principal Partner of COP26 – it’s a unique chance to call for more ambitious action towards a clean energy future, in the UK, our service areas in the northeast US, and globally. And it’s an ideal forum to show that achieving net zero is possible with the technologies and opportunities we have today, if we have the right policies, regulations and investments in place.

But COP26 isn’t just about the world leaders. We’re very keen that we bring the public with us along the journey as climate change will affect every one of us. Our research has shown that there is a climate knowledge gap so we want to ensure that the public feel they have the tools and ability to take small actions as it will take the power of all of us to make a difference.

Has the UK done enough this year to position itself as a world leader on climate change?

This year we’ve seen a lot of action and commitment from the UK government, from committing to to cut carbon emissions by 78% by 2035, to laying out plans for the decarbonisation of transport and the role of hydrogen in a net zero future. The Industrial Decarbonisation Strategy was welcomed by industry and green groups, with a roadmap in place to support the transition for industry and encourage growth of new, low carbon industries.

The UK government has certainly raised the bar on ambition. But we need to see what this really means in practice, with a hard push to get carbon emissions down now and in the years that follow the summit – straying from this purpose will jeopardise climate ambitions and keep the 78% target out of reach.”

Walking the talk

When is your company planning to get to net zero?

As a responsible business we’ve made our own commitments to achieve net zero by 2050. This includes reducing our Scope 1 and 2 direct emissions by 80% by FY2031 (from an FY1991 baseline), and increasing the ambition of our Scope 3 target which now covers emissions across our entire value chain – including things like the energy we sell in our US business, goods and services we procure across National Grid and general business travel – with a commitment to reduce the carbon emissions of our value chain by 37.5% by FY2034 (from a FY2019 baseline).

These carbon emissions reduction targets have been officially approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), and we’ve also joined their ‘Business ambition for 1.5 degrees’ campaign.

We’re taking a number of actions to achieve our targets. For example, we’ve significantly reduced the carbon intensity of our construction activities over the past five years and have set a goal for the emissions from our UK construction projects to be carbon-neutral in 2026. Achieving this is a huge collaborative effort to find solutions to reduce carbon in infrastructure, exploring how low-carbon concrete, for example, can be deployed in projects. We’re also moving to a 100% electric fleet by 2030 for light-weight vehicles in the UK and US and looking at how we can reduce SF6 gas from our assets by 2050.

To what extent should utilities look to offset emissions as opposed to focusing on achieving zero carbon?

First and foremost companies should focus on where they achieve zero carbon, whether that’s by electrifying their fleet, cutting carbon in construction, or assessing carbon at different stages of the investment cycle. Where emissions cannot be cut, companies should look to offset these only as a secondary option.

Customers and the community

What role do you think utilities have in helping to accelerate the climate plans of local authorities?

The UK has so far shown international leadership in funding and transforming to a low carbon energy system but as we try and find our way out of a pandemic, we cannot risk losing that lead or economic opportunity, or leave anyone behind. Solving this challenge not only requires a vision, but net zero leadership across local authorities. For example, the West Midland Combined Authority has demonstrated this with its ‘5-year plan’ and ‘Net Zero Pathfinder’ initiative, to create a step change in their net zero ambitions.

And we’re playing our part too. Last year we invested just over £1.2 billion in major electricity and gas projects in the UK.

National Grid is partnering with energy companies, industrial emitters, and local communities on a plan to decarbonise industry across the Humber & Teesside and deliver 25,000 jobs per year between 2023 and 2050. The East Coast Cluster will deliver the infrastructure to capture carbon emissions from industrial sites and store them safely under the North Sea. It is the single biggest opportunity to decarbonise industry anywhere in the country, representing almost 50% of carbon emissions from all UK industrial clusters.”

What role can utilities play in helping to engage customers on the path to net zero? What do you see as the biggest challenges to that engagement?

There is an energy awareness gap that exists among consumers which can lead to misconceptions on the progress being made to tackle climate change. For example, our research shows that 42% of Brits incorrectly believe that Britain only gets up to 10 per cent of its electricity from zero and low carbon energy sources. In fact, clean energy like wind, solar and nuclear account for an average of 55 per cent of Britain’s electricity mix. Carbon jargon is another factor preventing people from engaging on the issue of climate change. Brits haven’t heard of terms like decarbonisation (77%), carbon capture (74%), net zero (61%), green tariffs (49%) and carbon neutral (42%).

A big part of our approach is about bringing consumers on the journey with us. For example, how will moving from petrol or diesel cars to electric vehicles impact them? What does it mean for hydrogen to heat UK homes? Making this relatable and tangible for consumers can help raise awareness of why tackling climate change and reducing our carbon emissions is something everyone can be a part of, and shows that we can all have a voice in achieving a clean energy future.”

Policy & regulation

What is your principle ask of government to help your company contribute to the net-zero push?

Clear alignment across the G20 will help turbo charge the changes we’re already seeing in global markets and accelerate the shift in business investment towards a zero-carbon economy.

Underpinning this, we need to ensure energy markets and policies are able to deliver on climate goals. For us at National Grid, this requires the right regulatory, planning and policy framework to drive investment in zero-carbon infrastructure in a way that works for the communities we serve.

This interview is part of the Countdown to COP series. To read more click here.