Utility Week

8 | 13TH - 19TH DECEMBER 2019 | UTILITY WEEK Review of the year Boris Johnson v Jeremy Hunt Which PM would serve utilities best? That was the question during the strange summer limbo of 2019 while the nation awaited Theresa May's successor. With the long-awaited energy white paper still to materialise and decarboni- sation front and centre of utility strategy across the industry – a new premier in favour of advancing environmental pol- icy felt key. Unsurprisingly, frontrunners Hunt and Johnson were to rediscover their environmental credentials in time for the hustings, yet history was to reveal that Boris would be the man to lead the Tories – and the country, albeit to a general election this week as it turned out. Hope remained that he would deliver on his net zero rhetoric if he were to hang on to power, although his swerv- ing of the recent Channel 4 debate on cli- mate change was an alarm bell for those acutely aware of just how quickly the clock is ticking. Cabinet: Leadsom in, Clarke out, Gove moves, Perry leaves The Cabinet merry-go-round brought its inevitable ministerial shake-ups. Former energy minister Andrea Lead- som returned to become BEIS secretary, replacing Brexit rebel Greg Clarke. Former environment secretary Michael Gove moved to become Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet O• ce, while Claire Perry stepped down from her role as clean growth min- ister, citing personal reasons. She was later appointed "president" of next year's UN climate talks, COP26 in Glasgow. Regulation: Nolan, Brearley and Cox Dermot Nolan is to leave in February next year, to be replaced as Ofgem chief executive by Jonathan Brearley at a time of what even its chairman has described as "unparalleled change", as the industry embarks on its journey towards net zero. Jonson Cox has been reappointed to remain as chair of Ofwat until 2021, extending his tenure by one year. Cox has held the non-executive chair position since November 2012. Analysis The dreaded 'n' word… No sooner had 2019 begun than it felt like the looming threat of nationalisation had become a real and present danger for water and the networks. While the opposition's emerging thinking had been revealed a few months before, what had seemed like a vague spectre from the past was fast becoming a living, breathing bogeyman for utilities. They would learn later in the year, once a general election was called in the autumn, that Labour's plans under Jeremy Corbyn for public ownership would go even further. The party's sights would also be trained on privatising energy retail giants – although there was little detail about precisely which companies fell into this category. Under "McDonnellenomics", as the chancellor's vision came to be dubbed by some, chief executives would need to reap- ply for their jobs, there would be more transpar- ency on remuneration and performance, and worker representation would become a feature of utility boardrooms. It's a vision that hit a chord with a populous tired with aus- terity and disillusioned with headlines about excessive prof- its, leakage and executive pay. Yet the proposals created huge questions over how such radical economic transformation could be › nanced and the legal implications involved. Recent reports have revealed that some utilities had not only sought legal advice, but that National Grid and SSE have since moved ownership of their UK opera- tions oŸ shore in a bid to protect the value of their assets. B is for blackout The country received a shock to its system on 9 August when we witnessed the biggest power cut in a decade. A confluence of circumstances following a lightning strike on the transmission network – including two unexpected outages at Hornsea and Little Barford, 500MW of embedded generation going o line, and the loss of further units at Little Barford – brought disruption for thousands. While it was contained as planned and resolved relatively rapidly, the event has proved a wake-up call for those who take the electricity system for granted. It has sparked questions for National Grid ESO and changed the national conversation over what this might signal for the future shape and operation of our country's fast-evolving, increasingly dispersed energy system. ☛ continued from previous page ply for their jobs, there would be more transpar- ency on remuneration Johnson Hunt Perry Leadsom Gove Brearley Cox Nolan

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