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UTILIT Y WEEK LIVE 2019 REVIEW The ENA's head of gas Matthew Hindle said: "For us it offered an opportunity to talk about all of the innovation work that the gas networks are undertaking both in terms of the future energy system but also how we run our networks more efficiently and how we deliver for consumers. "We've had some great conversations and the level of interest has been extremely high. The sessions on the Future of Gas in the Network theatre were packed. At Utility Week Live you see a lot of opportunities for cross-vector innovation and get ideas from other sectors. For example, I've had conver - sations with water companies and the sup- ply chain, and you start to see whole-system thinking across innovation and how there are parallels not just between electricity and gas, but also the wider utility sector." Talking about the role that gas networks can play in helping to achieve decarboni - sation, Hindle added: "I think what the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) net zero advice shows is that the work we're doing to decarbonise gas is more important than ever. One of the most notable things in the report was the section on hydrogen that said moving from an 80 per cent target to net zero turns hydrogen from an option to a necessity. That shows you how important it is that we continue to develop the options for delivering hydrogen grids, repurposing our existing infrastructure and making sure NETWORK / 36 / JULY/AUGUST 2019 that we've got everything in place to deliver hydrogen safely to consumers and decar- bonise those difficult areas like heat and transport." Chris Clarke, energy strategy director at Wales & West Utilities, echoed many of Hindle's views. He said: "The networks have always done a lot of collaboration on individual projects, but I think what we haven't done in the past is join that all together. Around a year ago we decided to hold a more col - laborative event where we could pool all our resources onto one stand and make sure we're showcasing each other's technology. But also emerging from that is more of a single voice from the networks, particularly around the future and where we see gas networks going." Referencing the CCC's Net Zero report, Clarke added: "The first thing the report talks about is that's there an essential role for gas networks. "We're broadly supportive of the CCC's report and I think there's an essential role for gas networks in delivering that, particu - larly at the least cost and least disruption to consumers. "All the evidence is pointing to the fact that hydrogen is an important part of the future. We need to do demonstration work and that is going on. It's being funded in combination with Ofgem innovation fund - ing and funding from BEIS. That work is moving ahead at quite some pace." Clarke acknowledged that there are challenges around the wider deployment of hydrogen but described it as crucial to the economy of Wales. "In south Wales where I work industry is crucial to the economy of Wales. Without hydrogen the risk is that we'll lose that industry overseas where other people won't be following the same carbon target path - ways," he remarked. "The ENA's Pathways project is progress- ing very quickly and we've already come up with a conclusion of what a future energy system should look like. Now they're work- ing out how to put that into practice." So, what will the gas network of the future look like? "It's going to look very different to today," notes Clarke. "Our own vision at Wales & West is we see a 100 per cent hydrogen network within the South Wales and Bristol area. We see the rest of it as a biomethane network using hybrid heating technology and wind energy to heat the homes around the rest of the network. We also see storage continuing to be a key issue. We see these changes coming, but we've got the engineers and the technology and we're ready to do it." To see video interviews from Utility Week Live visit: https://networks.online/ tag/video/