Numerous, interlocking dimensions of improvement are flagged as necessary in the ENA’s Energy Innovation Atlas, a report developed by consultants LCP Delta.

LCP Delta interviewed 300 industry representatives for their views on innovation needed to achieve Net Zero. The study sought input on five key pillars of innovation;

• developing assets and infrastructure,
• facilitating digitalisation,
• managing assets and optimising systems,
• meeting customers’ needs, and
• attracting talent and investment

Over eight workshops and associated online consultations, LCP Delta and the ENA explored these key pillars to identify 24 innovation ‘way points’, characterised by knotty challenges, all requiring a vision on managers’ change of mindset and skills.

Key findings from the report include:

• Developing by 2028 a supply chain that is fit-for-purpose, able to underpin an expansion I Britain’s transmission & distribution network, enabling radical transformation in their functions
• Better communication within and external to the power industry, supporting a ‘whole systems’ approach.
• Opening up access to markets access, welcoming in smaller innovators to fair and easy participation, as well as easing funding access to smaller players.
• Clarifying a workable definition of energy storage, and freeing its providers to operate assets more proactively it across the network, against a proposed deadline of 2032.
• Communicating better with customers and the wider public, ensure roles and their consequences in who and how Britain’s energy system must be decarbonised. New skills functions and data sets are required.

Commenting on the report’s findings, Tom Veli, energy networks head at LCP Delta, the ENA’s advisors, said:

“Energy networks are at a critical point with demand beginning to increase rapidly as the low-carbon economy picks up further.

“This means that operators are facing the challenge of rapidly developing their networks as they look to accommodate the surging demand.

“This monumental shift imposes extra responsibilities on the networks, particularly in respect of interactions with customers, with the industry, alongside regulators and policymakers. The industry must drive a concerted effort into delivering the innovations that are needed.

To access the full report, click here.

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Energy Systems Catapult was launched in 2015 by Innovate UK, the arms-length governmental body steering marketable scientific research.

The Catapult has since built a team of nearly 300 experts across energy technologies, including engineering, consumption, financial & commercial management and energy policy. It draws on sector-leading test facilities & modelling tools, as well as data amassed in more than 500 research projects.

Dr Cocker’s 28 years of industrial experience includes spells with innovators and some of the UK’s biggest energy companies.  In the past decade he chaired both the Energy Innovation Centre and the Energy & Utilities Industrial Partnership.

He said: “The Catapult has created an impressive track record helping promising clean technology businesses to bring innovative energy products and services to market.

“With just 26 years left to hit our Net Zero target, this is an incredibly important and exciting time. We are seeing companies aiming to transform the energy system, making the transition to a zero-carbon economy easier, cheaper, more accessible, and simpler for consumers.

“There are a host of economic opportunities that innovators – large and small – can seize as we make the move to Net Zero. I look forward to helping the Catapult team to support these talented innovators to reshape the sector.”

The Catapult’s chief executive Guy Newey said: “Tony will be a fantastic addition. He brings a wealth of sector experience and expertise that will help bolster our mission to accelerate Net Zero energy innovation.

Dr Cocker will step into the role previously held since 2015 by Nick Winser CBE. The departing boss said: “Energy Systems Catapult has come so far since it was founded. We have helped deliver economic growth, supporting hundreds of companies to create new products and services that will be key to getting us to Net Zero.

“In our work in Local Area Energy Planning or Warm Home Prescription, we have ignited a spark in the innovation space to create a better approach that benefits both consumers and innovators

Based in Birmingham, Energy Systems Catapult is part of a network of nine world-leading technology and innovation centres. It fosters collaboration between industry, government, research organisations and academia.

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The city’s Blackburn Meadows renewable energy park is home to pioneering innovations headed by E.ON, assisted by Chesterfield Special Cylinders, the University of Sheffield’s Energy Institute  and partners across the region.

The project explores ways to generate green hydrogen, for use by the city’s steelmakers and south Yorkshire’s energy-intensive industries.

Strong desire from steelmakers has been unearthed in the project’s early stages to find a cleaner alternative to natural gas in firing forges and industrial processes.  Operational findings from the trial’s three first manufacturers is that sustainable hydrogen maintains output quality, at the same time cutting emissions by 41.8% against natural gas.  The three debutant manufacturers are on course to save 3,500 tonnes of CO₂ per year.

£1 million of Government funding , from D-ESNZ’s £ 1 billion Net Zero Innovation Portfolio (NZIP) backs the Yorkshire partners’ desk assessment of commercial and engineering needs in generating, transporting and using hydrogen, as well as developing its commercial offer to industrial customers. If that is successful, the next stage will be a technical pilot project at the Blackburn Meadows sewage processor site, on the city’s fringes at Tinsley.  Expansion could follow, if the project is taken forward to a full commercial demonstration.

E.ON leads the initiative alongside Chesterfield Special Cylinders, Glass Futures, University of Sheffield Energy Institute and Sheffield Forgemasters.

Chris Lovatt, E.ON’s UK Solutions’ chief operating officer, said: “Hydrogen will play a significant role in our energy future, mainly powering energy-intensive industries and long-distance transport. It sits alongside the drive for heat pumps meeting domestic heating needs and a greater role for district energy schemes in urban areas.

“The first stages of our trial show the technology works and can support the industry’s needs for alternative fuels as well as Sheffield’s wider sustainability ambitions. We know there are challenges to overcome before this becomes a viable solution for industry but the success so far has been rewarded by further funding from Government to explore the potential of green hydrogen as a solution for Sheffield’s world-renowned steelmakers.”

From Sheffield Uni’s Energy Institute, Professor Mohamed Pourkashanian responded: “We are thrilled that this project has received funding from the UK Government to progress to a second stage.

The work we’re doing for this project at our Energy Institute, including computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) modelling and in-depth hydrogen research, will help bring us a step closer to vital industrial decarbonisation and beyond.

 “It is increasingly important to get the technological solutions we need to reduce emissions right first time, so carrying out these detailed and industry-supported projects at the University of Sheffield Energy Institute means we can test, scale and ultimately implement these alternative solutions as efficiently as possible.”

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The marine engineers already count six live generating projects, from Wales & Canada. Two more ventures will be deployed in the latter this year.

The company’s Eunice turbine has contributed to the Shetland Islands’ grid since 2016.  Configured around a single-blade rotor 8.6 metre in diameter, the kit is built to last for twenty years.

As in Shetland and Canada, Nova worked with local experts and suppliers to ensure success of its French project, delivered as part of the ELEMENT project in partnership with CINEA (European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency).

The Étel flows into the Atlantic near Lorient, Britanny.  The shoreline showcases one of Brittany’s most beautiful natural landscapes, and the engineers say their robust environmental credentials were a key factor to site approval.

Mounted on the sea-bed, Nova’s turbines create no visual impact or navigational hazard, so oyster fishermen, yachtsmen and kayakers are unaffected by the turbines.

France & Britain shared the majority of Europe’s tidal races, Nova CEO Simon Forest noted.

“We are delighted to have successfully delivered this project in collaboration with our French partners and the European Commission. The potential for tidal energy in France is huge and this pan-European collaboration has demonstrated a continued path of cost reduction alongside enhanced reliability.

“The demonstration of our technology in estuaries and rivers significantly increases the global market for our turbines. Nova is perfectly placed to help deliver the EU’s tidal energy ambitions and play its part in Europe’s energy security”, added the fabricators’ boss.

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Robots that patrol UK roads to detect and repair cracks and potholes, using Artificial Intelligence (AI) that will help to reduce beer waste and converting seaweed into compostable packaging are just some of over 1,000 projects that will today receive £134 million of government investment.

Businesses right across the UK, from Glasgow to Devon, are set to benefit from the investment, enabling 1069 ground-breaking clean growth projects develop new technologies, secure and create new jobs, drive productivity and tackle climate change.

This includes marine company Rovco in Bristol, which is developing technology allowing for autonomous underwater inspections of large offshore wind turbines. This will be crucial in assisting human operators carry out effective maintenance of one of the UK’s cleanest, renewable energy sources, which can often be dangerous, while ensuring it is carried out in accordance with social distancing measures.

KegTracker in Pontypridd, Wales, is aiming to reduce the amount of waste in the UK’s brewing industry by using artificial intelligence (AI) to turn kegs into ‘smart containers’ that will provide real time data to accurately monitor the condition and contents of kegs as they travel from brewery to pub and back again. This will help reduce the amount of liquid that is thrown away annually, currently costing the UK an estimated £5 billion a year.

Another company, Oceanium in Argyll, Scotland, is developing an advanced bio-refinery which will turn seaweed into food and compostable packaging products, tackling plastic waste and creating new jobs in the local area, while supporting the UK’s target to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

These ideas could transform whole industries such as manufacturing, hospitality and the automotive sector by helping them respond to the unique challenges presented by the pandemic, while supporting risk takers to bring their novel ideas to market.

Business Secretary Alok Sharma said, “The UK’s response to coronavirus has demonstrated the very best of British ingenuity, and it is this resourcefulness that will help us navigate our way through this pandemic.

“Today’s investment will ensure that our innovators and risk-takers can continue to scale up their ideas, helping the UK to build back better and ensure we meet our clear commitments on tackling climate change.”

An additional company receiving funding today includes Robotiz3D in Manchester, which is developing autonomous technology which will enable robots to be deployed to patrol UK roads to detect and repair cracks and potholes as soon as they appear. This approach will speed up the time taken to make repairs and will lower overall costs, while reducing the carbon footprint caused by road maintenance vehicles.

The Sustainable Innovation Fund, delivered through Innovate UK, is a cornerstone of the £1.25 billion investment package announced by the Chancellor in April to help ambitious, innovative businesses survive and thrive during the current pandemic.

Executive chair Innovate UK Dr Ian Campbell said, “Yet again we see the exciting range of business innovation taking place across the United Kingdom, despite these difficult times.

“Every initiative we’ve supported here represents an important step forward in sustainable economic development, but also one step nearer dreams becoming reality for ambitious hard-working company owners and their staff.”

The investment forms part of the government’s commitment to support the UK’s entrepreneurs and start-ups to scale up their innovations, set out in its R&D Roadmap in July this year.

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