Where Our Energy Comes From News: page 5
- February 2024
Launch of Interim CMIS EC5 service
The Electricity System Operator launched an interim Constraint Management Intertrip Service for the EC5 region in February 2024, with an enduring service to follow from April 2025.
- January 2024
SSEN moves to Weather Warning status for north of Scotland ahead of 31 January winds
SSEN Distribution moved to Weather Warning status for the north of Scotland on 29 January 2024, then upgraded to Yellow Alert on 30 January, ahead of very strong winds forecast for Wednesday 31 January.
SSEN restores power to 35,000 homes after Storm Isha
SSEN restored power to 35,000 homes in central southern England after Storm Isha, as the network operator prepared for Storm Jocelyn and set out compensation for affected customers.
Storm Jocelyn forecast to disrupt SSEN network
SSEN restored power to more than 36,000 homes after Storm Isha and warned that Storm Jocelyn is expected to disrupt its network through Tuesday and Wednesday.
SSEN maintains yellow alert for north of Scotland ahead of Storm Jocelyn
SSEN keeps its yellow alert for the north of Scotland as Storm Jocelyn is forecast to bring 75mph gusts overnight, while crews finish reconnecting 370 properties left without power by Storm Isha.
SSEN moves to Weather Warning status for central southern England
SSEN Distribution moved to Weather Warning status for central southern England on 18 January 2024, warning of gusts of 55 to 60mph from Sunday night into Monday morning.
Weather warning for central southern England with damaging winds forecast
SSEN activated contingency plans and added teams ahead of gusts forecast above 55mph inland and 60mph on coasts and high ground across central southern England on 2 January 2024.
Issuance of accelerated connection contracts for 10 GW of BESS
The Electricity System Operator issued connection contracts with accelerated dates for 21 battery storage projects totalling 10 GW at the start of 2024, it has reported.
- December 2023
SSEN offers £30 per person per day compensation during Storm Gerrit outages
SSEN Distribution has confirmed that customers left without power for more than 12 hours by Storm Gerrit can claim £30 per person per day for food and drink, as around 16,000 properties remained off supply.
Storm Gerrit damages SSEN network in north of Scotland
Storm Gerrit damaged SSEN's network across the north of Scotland on 27 December 2023, leaving just over 16,000 properties off supply by 9.45pm and some rural homes without power until Friday.
SSEN Distribution moves to Weather Warning status ahead of forecast high winds
SSEN Distribution moved to Weather Warning status on 18 December 2023 ahead of strong winds forecast across northern Scotland, activating contingency plans and additional teams.
Octopus overtakes British Gas as largest electricity supplier
Octopus Energy became the UK's largest electricity supplier in late 2023, overtaking British Gas after completing its purchase of Shell Energy's household customers.
Release 1 of the Open Balancing Platform went live
The first release of the Open Balancing Platform went live in December 2023, part of the Electricity System Operator's work to cut the cost of balancing the grid.
- November 2023
SSEN completes £3.9 million Netley Common network upgrade
SSEN has completed a £3.9 million rebuild of the Netley Common electricity network near Southampton, begun in December 2021, with a further £3 million project proposed for early 2025.
Good Energy launches Power Pause demand flexibility scheme
Good Energy has joined National Grid's Demand Flexibility Service for winter 2023, inviting eligible smart meter customers to register for its Power Pause scheme and earn bill credit for cutting peak-time electricity use.
SSEN restores power to almost 25,000 customers after Storm Ciarán
SSEN restored power to almost 25,000 customers in central southern England after Storm Ciarán, with around 2,000 still off supply at noon on 2 November 2023 and the network at Yellow Alert.
New design standard for domestic connections comes into effect in Northern Ireland
NIE Networks has brought in a new design standard for domestic connections in Northern Ireland from 1 November 2023, allowing new connections to support higher capacity for heat pumps and electric vehicle chargers.
National Grid prepares for Storm Ciarán in South West England and South Wales
National Grid has put standby staff, extra contact centre operatives and helicopters on readiness ahead of Storm Ciarán, which is forecast to bring gusts of up to 85mph to exposed coasts of South West England and South Wales.
Passiv UK launches Greener Grid Payments for heat pump customers
Passiv UK has launched Greener Grid Payments, an automated service that pays its heat pump control customers for cutting power at peak times under the National Grid ESO Demand Flexibility Service.
Petroineos announces closure of Grangemouth oil refinery
Petroineos announced in November 2023 that it would close the Grangemouth oil refinery, and the company completed the closure in 2025, according to the Climate Change Committee.
- October 2023
SSEN Distribution moves to Weather Warning status ahead of Storm Ciarán
SSEN Distribution moved to Weather Warning status on 30 October 2023 and then to Yellow Alert on 31 October, standing up extra teams ahead of Storm Ciarán's forecast 70mph coastal gusts.
SSEN restores power to 37,000 customers after Storm Babet
SSEN has restored power to 37,000 customers after Storm Babet, fixing more than 450 faults, but around 150 flooded properties in Brechin cannot yet be reconnected safely.
SGN launches energy efficiency tool with Energy Saving Trust
SGN has launched an energy efficiency tool developed with the Energy Saving Trust that gives households a personalised action plan and could save an average of £110 a year on bills.
NIE Networks announces change to design standard for new domestic connections
NIE Networks will introduce a higher-capacity design standard for new domestic connections from 1 November 2023, after a consultation on accommodating electric vehicle chargers and heat pumps.
National Infrastructure Commission estimates gas network decommissioning cost
The National Infrastructure Commission estimated in October 2023 that decommissioning the gas networks would cost £25 billion, a figure cited by the Committee of Public Accounts in its May 2024 report on decarbonising home heating.
- September 2023
E3G assesses UK government response to gas crisis
E3G analysis finds the UK has not enacted long-term measures to cut exposure to volatile gas markets, and sets out recommendations on a social tariff, retrofit and renewables.
SSEN Distribution launches data portal in partnership with Icebreaker One
SSEN Distribution has launched an open data portal built with Icebreaker One, publishing anonymised load-modelling data under a Creative Commons licence for use by councils, businesses and individuals.
- August 2023
SSEN extends Sherborne upgrade to December 2023
SSEN has extended its Sherborne network upgrade from September to December 2023 and raised investment in the Dorset project to £1.9 million, covering around 10,350 homes and businesses.
SSEN begins £2.6m Charminster electricity infrastructure upgrade
SSEN has started a £2.6 million upgrade of underground cabling in Charminster, Dorset, replacing 4.6 kilometres of cable in works that run until March 2024.
UK Power Networks reports trial success and considers next steps
UK Power Networks says it is considering how to build on a fuel voucher trial with charity Scope that gave more than 1,000 disabled customers £80 towards their energy bills.