A report provided findings from an independent evaluation of the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target and the Community Energy Savings Programme, which were two initiatives aimed at improving energy efficiency in domestic households in Britain.
Source: Ipsos MORI, CAG Consultants, UCL, and Energy Saving Trust, Evaluation of the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target and Community Energy Saving Programme, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Date: 2014-Sep
A think-tank report said that old models of electricity provision were being challenged by the new distributed electricity technologies (including solar photovoltaics, onshore wind power, batteries, smart thermostats and appliances, and highly efficient lights), which had the capacity to produce a cleaner, cheaper, and more secure supply for consumers. The report argued for a shift in government policy to remove bias towards large scale utility providers and to support the development of new technologies. It made a range of recommendations.
Source: Reg Platt, with Jack Williams, Anne Pardoe, and Will Straw, A New Approach to Electricity Markets: How new, disruptive technologies change everything, Institute for Public Policy Research
Links: Report | IPPR press release
Date: 2014-Sep
A report said that the next fifteen years were critical for climate change, but structural and technological change, opportunities for greater economic efficiency, and the availability of investment capital meant that countries at all levels of income now had the opportunity to build lasting economic growth at the same time as reducing climate change risks. The report highlighted three particular areas for action (cities, land use, and energy) and proposed a ten-point global action plan.
Source: The Global Commission on the Economy and Climate, Better Growth Better Climate: The new climate economy report – the synthesis report, New Climate Economy
Links: Report | NCE press release | BBC report | Guardian report | Guardian report | Guardian report
Date: 2014-Sep
The government published its response to a consultation on proposals for underground access for the extraction of gas, oil, or geothermal energy. It said that the proposed policy remained the right approach to underground access and that primary legislation would now be introduced to implement the policy proposals set out in the consultation paper.
Source: Underground Drilling Access: Government response to the Consultation on Proposal for Underground Access for the Extraction of Gas, Oil or Geothermal Energy, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Report | Associated papers | Consultation document | DECC press release | Friends of the Earth press release | RICS response | Scottish Government press release
Date: 2014-Sep
The government began consultation on proposals for amendments to the allocation regulations related to the non-delivery disincentive for Contracts for Difference (an electricity price stabilization mechanism). The consultation was published alongside separate consultations on other related matters and would close on 5 November 2014.
Source: EMR: Contracts for Difference (Allocation) Regulations – Consultation on non-delivery disincentive exemptions, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Consultation document
Date: 2014-Sep
The government began consultation on a range of supplementary design proposals for the Capacity Market (a system to assist in the assurance of electricity supply). The consultation was published alongside separate consultations on other related matters and would close on 5 November 2014.
Source: Electricity Market Reform: Capacity Market – Consultation on Capacity Market supplementary design proposals and transitional arrangements, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Consultation document | Related papers
Date: 2014-Sep
The government began consultation on proposals for changes to the Contracts for Difference (CFD) supplier obligation and operational costs levies. The consultation was published alongside separate consultations on related matters and would close on 5 November 2014.
Source: EMR: Changes to the CFD supplier obligation – Consultation on the implementation of exemptions from CFD costs for electricity intensive industries and imported renewable electricity; and minor and technical amendments to the CFD supplier obligation regulations, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Consultation document | Draft regulations | Impact assessment | Impact report
Date: 2014-Sep
A report by a committee of MPs said that the Green Deal finance scheme, designed to support improvements in the energy efficiency and warmth of United Kingdom homes, had not delivered as intended over its first eighteen months, and had caused frustration and confusion for both consumers and businesses in the supply chain through a combination of financial, communication, and behavioural barriers. The report called on the government to prioritize the Green Deal and to consider new incentives to encourage energy efficiency, such as stamp duty discounts and variable council tax rates.
Source: The Green Deal: Watching brief (part 2), Third Report (Session 2014–15), HC 348, House of Commons Energy and Climate Change Select Committee, TSO
Links: Report | Committee press release | NLA press release | Inside Housing report | Telegraph report
Date: 2014-Sep
A report, and accompanying position paper, discussed the implications for vulnerable customers of introducing smart energy meters in homes across Britain.
Source: National Energy Action, Developing an Extra Help Scheme for Vulnerable Smart Meter Customers: Research undertaken by NEA for Citizens Advice, Citizens Advice
Source: Smart Meter Extra Help: Ensuring all consumers benefit from the rollout of smart meters, Citizens Advice
Date: 2014-Sep
A report provided interim findings from an evaluation of the non-domestic Renewable Heat Initiative (RHI), which was launched in November 2011 to provide financial incentives to install renewable heating in place of fossil fuels. The work was part of a wider evaluation of the RHI that included work to assess the performance of the domestic RHI and the effect of both schemes on the renewable heat supply chain.
Source: Evaluation of the Renewable Heat Incentive Interim Report: The non-domestic scheme, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Report | Summary | Technical report | Applicant survey data tables | Awareness survey data tables
Date: 2014-Aug
The Scottish Government began consultation on its policy statement on community energy policy. The document set out the government's progress to date and the various forms of support that might be needed in future to facilitate community involvement, mitigate risks, and effectively incentivize communities and developers. The consultation would close on 10 November 2014.
Source: Community Energy Policy Statement: Draft for public consultation, Scottish Government
Links: Consultation document | Scottish Government press release
Date: 2014-Aug
A report examined demand side response (DSR) a form of electricity supply and billing where price depended upon when the energy was used. The report looked at issues of affordability, accessibility, consumer protection, and how the savings from the scheme would be distributed. It made a range of recommendations, but highlighted three particular messages: that consumers would need clear information and be able to compare DSR offers; that protections would be needed to safeguard consumers from financial or other detriment; and that the needs of vulnerable consumer groups must be considered, to prevent them from being negatively affected by DSR, and to enable them to share in any benefits.
Source: Take a Walk on the Demand-Side: Making electricity demand side response work for domestic and small business consumers, Citizens Advice
Date: 2014-Aug
Two reports examined the use of demand-side measures in the policy development process for the government's whole system energy models, which were used to help to guide and evaluate policy proposals. The demand-side measures were referred to collectively as D3: demand reduction; demand response; and distributed energy generation. The first report provided analysis of the D3 policy landscape, and considered potential options for further developing consideration of demand-side measures within the work of the Department for Energy and Climate Change. The second report considered: how D3 was represented in the department's energy system models; how integrated they were; the challenges to modelling D3; and possible ways that the department could improve its models, or use of models, in the analysis of demand-side policies.
Source: D3: Opportunities for integrating demand side energy policies, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Report | Introduction
Source: Tom Hinton and Joshua Thumim, An Analysis of D3 in DECC's Energy System Models: Report to Department of Energy & Climate Change, Centre for Sustainable Energy
Links: Report | Introduction | CSE press release
Date: 2014-Aug
A think-tank report examined the role of United Kingdom environmental and energy policy in contributing to the international effort to address the impact of climate change, and discussed how such measures could contribute to resolving three problematic domestic issues (energy costs to the domestic user, lack of investment in new infrastructure, and uneven recovery in employment and growth across the United Kingdom regions). The report outlined actions needed, and made a range of related recommendations.
Source: Will Straw, Reg Platt, and Jack Williams, A Brighter Future: How tackling climate change can deliver better living standards and shared prosperity, Institute for Public Policy Research
Links: Report
Date: 2014-Aug
A report by a committee of MPs said that innovative low carbon technologies such as bioenergy, offshore wind, and carbon capture and storage would be necessary to achieve the United Kingdom's legally binding 2020 and 2050 carbon emissions targets, but there was a mismatch between the resources allocated to support companies working in these fields and the government's level of policy ambition. The report outlined a range of issues related to the Low Carbon Innovation Co-ordination Group, and made recommendations to the government.
Source: Innovate to Accumulate: The Government's approach to low carbon innovation, Second Report (Session 2014 15), HC 344, House of Commons Energy and Climate Change Select Committee, TSO
Links: Report | Committee press release
Date: 2014-Aug
The government began seeking views and evidence on proposals for the government's engagement with the carbon capture and storage (CCS) industry, and on a range of options for Phase 2 of CCS deployment in the United Kingdom. The document also summarized government policy and actions during Phase 1. Responses were invited by 23 October 2014.
Source: Next Steps in CCS: Policy scoping document Developing an approach for the next phase of Carbon Capture & Storage projects in the UK, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Scoping document | Associated documents | DECC press release
Date: 2014-Aug
The government began consultation on its proposed Strategy and Policy Statement, prepared in accordance with the Energy Act 2013 to provide context and clarity for the energy regulator regarding the government's strategic policy priorities, and the roles and responsibilities of those involved in the implementation of energy policy. The consultation would close on 17 October 2014.
Source: Strategy and Policy Statement, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Consultation document
Date: 2014-Aug
A report discussed the high level issues regarding the use of Contracts for Difference (CfDs) to incentivize the development of new renewable electricity projects connected to the electricity systems of Britain but located outside of the United Kingdom. It discussed indicative areas of work that would need to be addressed to open the UK CfD scheme to eligible non-UK renewable electricity projects.
Source: Contract for Difference for non-UK Renewable Electricity Projects, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Report
Date: 2014-Aug
The government began consultation on proposals for a new allowance to support investment in ultra high pressure, high temperature oil and gas projects through allowing cluster area plans, intended to help achieve the 'maximum economic recovery' of oil and gas in designated clusters. The consultation included the detailed design of the new cluster area allowance, which had been announced in the 2014 Budget. The consultation would close on 30 September 2014.
Source: Maximising Economic Recovery: Consultation on a cluster area allowance, HM Treasury
Links: Consultation document | HMT press release
Date: 2014-Jul
A report set out the government's new framework for managing higher activity radioactive waste in the long term through geological disposal, including the approach to making siting decisions.
Source: Implementing Geological Disposal: A Framework for the long-term management of higher activity radioactive waste, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Report | DECC press release
Date: 2014-Jul
An article examined the role of the European Union in major infrastructure policies in the fields of transport and energy. It discussed major proposals for cross-European transport, and regional schemas for energy, noting the significance for spatial planners, the impact on future infrastructure networks, and the impact on the rescaling and re-ordering of government and decision-making. It made suggestions for national and regional governments, and for the creation of spatial planning analytical capability at the European Union level.
Source: Tim Marshall, 'The European Union and major infrastructure policies: the reforms of the trans-European networks programmes and the implications for spatial planning', European Planning Studies, Volume 22 Issue 7
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Jul
The government began consultation on proposals for a fuel poverty strategy for England. The consultation would close on 7 October 2014.
Source: Cutting the Cost of Keeping Warm: A new fuel poverty strategy for England, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Consultation document | DECC press release | Childrens Society press release | Citizens Advice press release | Inside Housing report
Date: 2014-Jul
Two reports provided the findings from advisory stakeholder working groups on proposed energy efficiency regulations under the Energy Act 2011 for the domestic and non-domestic private rented sectors.
Source: The Domestic Private Rented Sector Regulations Working Group Report to Government, Domestic Private Rented Sector (PRS) Regulations Working Group
Links: Report
Source: The Non-Domestic Minimum Building Energy Performance Standards Working Group – Report to Government, Non-Domestic Private Rented Sector (PRS) Regulations Working Group
Links: Report
Date: 2014-Jul
A report provided the findings from Public Health England's review of the potential public health impacts of exposures to chemical and radioactive pollutants as a result of the shale gas extraction process.
Source: Review of the Potential Public Health Impacts of Exposures to Chemical and Radioactive Pollutants as a Result of the Shale Gas Extraction Process, Public Health England
Links: Report | Cover note | PHE press release
Date: 2014-Jun
A report provided an overview of energy market reform policy, to coincide with the implementing secondary legislation being laid before Parliament. The report included chapters on the two main mechanisms that the government would be introducing: Contracts for Difference (to provide greater pricing certainty for low-carbon projects); and the Capacity Market (to provide regular payment to energy generators in return for providing capacity when demand required). It also discussed the improvement of energy efficiency through the Electricity Demand Reduction programme.
Source: Implementing Electricity Market Reform (EMR), Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Report | DECC press release
Date: 2014-Jun
The Queen's Speech set out the United Kingdom coalition government's legislative programme for 2014-15. It included plans for an Infrastructure Bill to include provisions to: change the Highways Agency into a government-owned company; simplify processes relating to nationally significant infrastructure projects; allow for deemed discharge on certain types of planning conditions if local planning authorities had delayed decisions; change regulations regarding the transfer of public sector land assets; pass responsibility for the local land charges register to the land registry; make changes regarding underground access to gas and oil from shale and geothermal energy, subject to ongoing consultation; and make changes to building regulations to improve energy performance standards for new homes, including off-site carbon abatement measures ('allowable solutions').
Source: Queen's Speech, 4 June 2014, columns 1-4, House of Commons Hansard, TSO
Links: Hansard | Prime Ministers Office briefing | Cabinet Office guidance | PMO/DPMO press release | NI Office press release | Scotland Office press release | Wales Office press release | BCC press release | CPRE press release | Countryside Alliance press release | Green Party press release 1 | Green Party press release 2 | National Trust press release | PwC press release | RICS press release | Scottish Government press release | BBC report | Guardian report 1 | Guardian report 2 | Inside Housing report | Telegraph report
Date: 2014-Jun
The Infrastructure Bill was published. The Bill was designed to: transfer the functions of the Highways Agency into a government-owned strategic highways company; simplify processes relating to nationally significant infrastructure projects (including gas, oil and other energy, transport, water, waste water, and waste projects); make changes to planning provisions, including allowing deemed discharge on certain types of planning conditions if local planning authorities had delayed decisions; change regulations regarding the transfer of public sector land assets, including provisions regarding the Homes and Communities Agency, Greater London Authority, and Mayoral development corporations; pass responsibility for the local land charges register to the land registry; and give members of communities the right to buy stake in local renewable electricity generation facilities.
Source: Infrastructure Bill, Department for Transport, TSO
Links: Bill | Explanatory notes | Briefing | Government press release | Inside Housing report
Date: 2014-Jun
A report by a committee of MPs said that shale gas represented an opportunity for Wales, but that developing this capacity need not be at the expense of Wales's natural environment. The report made recommendations for the Welsh and United Kingdom governments to take forward work to assess the impact and benefits of shale gas extraction.
Source: Energy Generation in Wales: Shale gas, First Report (Session 2014-15), HC 284, House of Commons Welsh Affairs Select Committee, TSO
Links: Report | Committee press release | BBC report
Date: 2014-Jun
The government began consultation on proposals to reform the procedure for gaining underground access to oil or gas deposits and geothermal energy. The proposals included: an underground right of access for shale gas and deep geothermal operations; a voluntary community payment of £20,000 per lateral well; and a notification system to alert local people. The consultation was published alongside a report on the resources of the Jurassic shales of the Weald, in northern England, and would close on 15 August 2014.
Source: Underground Drilling Access: Consultation on proposal for underground access for the extraction of gas, oil or geothermal energy, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Consultation document | Presentation | Weald study | DECC press release | Durham University press release | Guardian report
Date: 2014-May
A report by a committee of peers said that the government should do more to bring forward development of the United Kingdom's shale gas and oil resource exploration, and expressed concern that complex regulation might be causing unnecessary delays. The report said that the development of these resources should be regarded as a national emergency, and called for a range of actions, including: for a new committee or sub-committee of the Cabinet, chaired by the Chancellor, to take the issue forward; for a simplified and clear regulatory regime; and for government to make the economic case and reassure communities regarding the risks of harm to the environment or human health.
Source: The Economic Impact on UK Energy Policy of Shale Gas and Oil, 3rd Report (Session 2013–14), HL 172, House of Lords Economic Affairs Select Committee, TSO
Links: Report | Committee press release | BBC report | Telegraph report
Date: 2014-May
The European Commission published its strategy for energy security, proposing actions that included: increasing energy efficiency and reaching the proposed 2030 energy and climate goals; increasing energy production and diversifying supplier countries and routes; completing the internal energy market and building missing infrastructure links; and strengthening emergency and solidarity mechanisms and protecting critical infrastructure.
Source: Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council: European Energy Security Strategy, European Commission
Links: Strategy | Associated data | European Commission press release
Date: 2014-May
A report examined the views of recent home movers in Britain regarding the design and presentation of the Green Deal incentive scheme to encourage energy efficiency improvements to homes. It concluded that there was a need to reduce the cognitive burden on home-owners and 'reframe the offer', to increase understanding and remove barriers to uptake.
Source: Green Deal Incentives Research, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Report
Date: 2014-May
A report examined the potential impact of Scottish independence on energy markets and energy bills.
Source: Scotland Analysis: Energy, Cm 8826, Department for Energy and Climate Change, TSO
Links: Report | Technical appendix | Written ministerial statement | Speech | DECC press release | CBI press release
Date: 2014-Apr
A study examined the potential impacts of onshore wind farms and associated grid infrastructure on the visitor economy within Wales.
Source: Regeneris Consulting, Study into the Potential Economic Impact of Wind Farms and Associated Grid Infrastructure on the Welsh Tourism Sector, Welsh Government
Links: Report
Date: 2014-Apr
The government published the second part of its strategy for solar power, building on the Solar PV Roadmap, published in October 2013, which established the principles for deployment in the United Kingdom. The second part of the strategy now focused on the development of key market segments, particularly the possibilities for deployment of solar panels on the roofs of commercial, industrial, and larger public buildings.
Source: UK Solar PV Strategy: Part 2 – Delivering a brighter future, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Strategy Part 2 | Strategy Part 1 | DECC press release
Date: 2014-Apr
The government began consultation on proposals to extend and amend the provisions of the Energy Company Obligation, which ran alongside the Green Deal to reduce carbon emissions from domestic and non-domestic buildings in the United Kingdom. The consultation would close on 16 April 2014.
Source: The Future of the Energy Company Obligation, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Consultation document | Associated documents | Edward Davey speech | Guardian report
Date: 2014-Mar
A series of reports provided results from the evaluation of the Green Deal, including: the third wave of the household tracker survey, designed to measure whether there were positive changes in awareness of the Green Deal and energy efficiency measures, intentions to install measures, and confidence in industry standards; and a synthesis of findings from the Green Deal assessments and customer journey research.
Source 1: Green Deal Household Tracker Survey: Wave 3 report, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Report | Summary | Associated documents | DECC press release
Source 2: GfK NOP, Green Deal Assessment Customer Research: Further analysis and new findings from quantitative surveys, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Report
Date: 2014-Mar
A report examined the findings from research (commissioned by the government) that had assessed the potential for recovering and using surplus heat from industry in the United Kingdom.
Source: Element Energy, Ecofys, Imperial College London, Paul Stevenson, and Robert Hyde, The Potential for Recovering and Using Surplus Heat from Industry: Final report, Element Energy
Links: Report | Technical appendix
Date: 2014-Mar
A government department published a range of reports drawn from its Household Electricity Use Survey, which monitored a total of 250 owner-occupier households across England from 2010 to 2011.
Source 1: Jean-Paul Zimmermann, Matt Evans, Jonathan Griggs, Nicola King, Les Harding, Penelope Roberts, and Chris Evans, Household Electricity Survey: A study of domestic electrical product usage, Intertek
Links: Report
Source 2: Jason Palmer, Nicola Terry, and Tom Kane, Early Findings: Demand side management, Cambridge Architectural Research/Element Energy/Loughborough University
Links: Report
Source 3: Jason Palmer, Nicola Terry, Tom Kane, Steven Firth, Mark Hughes, Peter Pope, Jacob Young, David Knight, and Daniel Godoy-Shimizu, Electrical Appliances at Home: Tuning in to energy saving, Cambridge Architectural Research/Element Energy/Loughborough University
Links: Report
Source 4: Mark Hughes and Jorge Garcia Moreno, Consumer Archetypes, Element Energy
Links: Report
Source 5: Mark Hughes and Jorge Garcia Moreno, Increasing Insight and UK Applicability, Element Energy
Links: Report
Source 6: Steven Firth and Jason Palmer, The Potential for Smart Meters in a National Household Energy Survey, Cambridge Architectural Research/Loughborough University
Links: Report
Date: 2014-Feb
An article examined the tensions between energy efficiency obligations on fuel suppliers (used to reduce carbon emissions) and measures to alleviate fuel poverty. These tensions arose from the potentially regressive impacts of rising energy prices resulting from such obligations, and also the complexity of targeting fuel-poor households and the implications for deliverability. The authors suggested alternative approaches to targeting fuel poverty within future supplier obligations.
Source: Jan Rosenow, Reg Platt, and Brooke Flanagan, 'Fuel poverty and energy efficiency obligations – a critical assessment of the supplier obligation in the UK', Energy Policy, Volume 62
Links: Abstract
Date: 2014-Feb
A government department published a report that collated three waves of research on the outcomes for households from Green Deal assessments.
Source: Green Deal Assessments Research: Research report from Waves 1, 2 and 3, and the Wave 1 follow up survey, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Report | Wave 1 summary | Wave 1 follow up | Wave 2 summary | Wave 3 summary
Date: 2014-Jan
The government published its first community energy strategy for the United Kingdom (noting the variously devolved responsibilities for policy in Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland). It outlined a range of opportunities for community energy, focusing on four areas of possible community involvement: generating energy (electricity or heat); reducing energy use (saving energy through energy efficiency and behaviour change); managing energy (balancing supply and demand); and purchasing energy (collective purchasing or switching to save money on energy). The government published, at the same time, a report on the potential for growth in the community renewable energy sector.
Source: Community Energy Strategy: Full report, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Report | Summary | Community renewable energy report | DECC press release
Date: 2014-Jan
A report evaluated the Local Energy Assessment Fund, a Department of Energy and Climate Change funding competition to help prepare communities in England and Wales to take action on energy efficiency and renewable energy and to take advantage of the opportunities offered by policies such as the Green Deal and Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI), as well as Feed-in Tariffs (FITs). 236 community-led organizations shared £9.2m (with an average award of approximately £40,000) to undertake activities such as public engagement exercises, scoping studies, demonstration projects, awareness-raising and behaviour change projects. The report outlined the range of projects funded, the enablers and barriers to success, and the outputs and outcomes during, and subsequent to, LEAF projects.
Source: Databuild Research & Solutions, DECC LEAF Evaluation, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Report | DECC press release
Date: 2014-Jan
A report outlined the findings from a small qualitative study of local authority led projects (on collective switching, fuel poverty alleviation, and Green Deal pioneer activity) that were funded by the Department for Energy and Climate Change's Local Authority Competition 2012-13. Collective switching projects led by community organizations were also funded under the Competition, which provided over £46 million to support 130 schemes covering over 260 local areas in England and, for collective switching schemes, Scotland. The report examined the range of activities and techniques used, what worked, lessons from the process, and the scheme's legacy.
Source: SE2, Learning from the DECC Local Authority Competitions 2012/13: A case study approach, Department for Energy and Climate Change
Links: Report | Appendices | DECC press release
Date: 2014-Jan