Utility Week

UTILITY WEEK | 21ST - 27TH FEBRUARY 2020 | 3 This week 4 | Seven days 6 Policy & Regulation 6 | News Capacity auction target reduced again 7 | Analysis Cabinet reshuffl e sees Alok Sharma made energy secretary 8 | Regional Growth & Utilities Regenerating the Humber with green energy 13 | Opinion Sharon Darcy, Sustainability First 15 Finance & Investment 15 | News Centrica blames poor results on price cap 17 Customers 17 | News SES fl ags up cost concerns to regulator 18 | Opinion Carl Packman, Fair by Design 21 fl eX Utility Week's quarterly technology supplement. 21 | Six big tech questions for 2020 26 | Drones in the ascendancy 28 | Why 5G can unlock the smart grid 30 Community 31 | Disconnector Leader Suzanne Heneghan 'Levelling up' is fi rmly on the agenda In the end, it wasn't so much a Cabinet reshu e as a house move. Yet while news of the departure of Andrea Leadsom as business secretary, and the sacking of Theresa Villiers at environment, came as little surprise, the resignation of Sajid Javid as chancellor sent some real ripples of concern around a utilities sector still awaiting budget clarity on future spending, national infrastructure and the ever-elusive Energy White Paper (see analysis, p7). Understandably, the Treasury versus Number 10 mêlée has domi- nated headlines. But less high proŠ le was the news that Northern Power house minister, Rossendale and Darwen MP Jake Berry, had "chosen to leave" government. Meanwhile, responsibility for the project at Cabinet level has moved to transport secretary (and home counties MP) Grant Schapps. At Š rst sight this feels like a downgrading of the Northern Power- house concept, a curious move at a time when regional issues – par- ticularly infrastructure investment for the North of England – are riding high on the political agenda. And, as Utility Week has been exploring in our "Regional Growth & Utilities" series, many within industry had seen the new Westminster focus on unifying the country as a welcome one for a sector gearing up to the nationwide challenges of net zero. They also know how the growth of clean energy can be game-changing for the prosperity of the local communities they operate in, as exempliŠ ed in our special report about the impact of renewables on the Humber (see p8). Yet some industry players see the Cabinet "adjustments" as no bad thing – far from it. They believe the move re› ects just how integral to the new "Johnsonomics" the government's commitment to northern growth and its infrastructure has become – a stance seemingly borne out by this month's decision to proceed with HS2. Meanwhile, as the chief executive of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership business lobby group, Henri Murison, pointed out in an interview with Utility Week earlier this month, the North will also have a strong cabinet champion in the shape of ex-Treasury chief secretary, and now newly appointed chancellor of the exchequer, Rishi Sunak. Murison greeted last week's announcement by describing the MP for Richmond, Yorkshire, as "a steadfast supporter of closing the North- South divide". It seems all bets are still on for the "levelling up" to begin. Suzanne Heneghan, editor, suzanneheneghan@fav-house.com COVER STORY 21 | fl eX Water companies put drones to work monitoring their networks REGIONAL GROWTH 8 | Ørsted's Emma Toulson says it's great up North OPINION 13 | Utilities can unlock local value FLEX 26 | Tech to watch out for in 2020 Mando: Improving experiences for vulnerable customers https://bit.ly/361toNK See the Community section, page 30 If you are responsible for your company's outsourced or internal customer service centre we can deliver compelling cost savings to your business, with a typical rate for an FTE of just £10 per hour. Synergy operates an established Contact Centre in a modern and thriving part of Durban, South Africa employing experienced and highly educated staff. We already successfully work with a number of UK utilities across a range of services: If you would like to see our operation for yourself we can fly you, at our cost, to South Africa. Here we will give you a full tour of our facilities, a presentation on how we work and access to our professional teams. For further information please contact steve.cripwell@synergyoutsourcingltd.co.uk / 020 7932 4171 or toby.selves@synergyoutsourcingltd.co.uk / 020 7932 4116 JULES: Working with the FITS regime https://bit.ly/2vEZfGi

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