Articles

Ben Young is an Operational Manager in the NGESO Control Centre in Wokingham. He currently splits his time between operational shift work in the control room and project work within a day team. Ben has been heavily involved in the NGESO’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic, leading their engagement with Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) and the wider electricity industry, as well as responding to the short-term operability challenges posed by low demand for electricity during the lockdown.

As the government starts to allocate funding for a variety of ‘green’ measures to support the UK’s economic recovery, we’d like to ensure that the views of business are taken into account.

We had a great turn-out for our webinar this week: Adapting your energy strategy: rising to new challenges and achieving energy goals.

As businesses return to work, the energy climate has changed and there are now plenty of new challenges – and also opportunities – to take into account.

It’s clear that businesses will play a key role in enabling the UK’s net zero transition. Encouragingly, even in the current Covid-19 era, we have seen an increase in the number of organisations that are pledging carbon reduction targets.

Following the Prime Minister’s pledge to ‘build back greener’, and ahead of the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s more detailed statement on the economic recovery plans, npower Business Solutions (nBS) consulted with 60 organisations, including manufacturers, professional services firms and the public sector, to assess whether they believed sustainability should form a central part of the proposals.

While it’s a time we will remember for many reasons – with Covid-19 resulting in shifting demand, an unprecedented coal-free spell and record low energy prices – it is also an opportunity to reflect and refocus.

What does the future hold for energy? While it's impossible to know for sure, looking back on how things have evolved can provide useful insight into what's to come - and help businesses decide what support they will need as they navigate a path to Net Zero.