UTILITY WEEK | JANUARY 2023 |
5
KNOWLEDGE WORTH KEEPING
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Is 2022 a year to forget?
A traditional New Year edition of a magazine would generally take a trip
down memory lane to re ect the highs and lows of the year.
While there's no shortage of talking points from the past 12 months, the sense
I get is that for the most part, 2022 will be a year to forget for the utilities sector.
For an industry that o• en measures public relations success by a lack of
coverage rather than the weight of it, the past year must have been an uncom-
fortable one. The utilities sector o• en ‚ nds itself in a kind of relay race of public
opinion, with scrutiny bearing down on diƒ erent elements of it at diƒ erent
times. However, in 2022 there can't have been many companies that escaped at
least one charge in the court of public opinion.
The year began with energy networks coming under pressure for their
response to disruption from the string of named storms that were just beginning
to end their assault on the British Isles. Some very sensible recommendations
followed in terms of bolstering the response plans of the networks. But it was a
shame the debate did not stay in the public eye long enough to really delve into
the issue of resilience or the wider collaboration across utilities that remains far
from perfect.
Throughout the year, the issue of pollution entering our waterways remained
a thorny topic, with water companies struggling to ‚ nd an angle on the debate
and all too o• en bearing the brunt of public anger. The problem remains far too
emotive and the data overwhelming to ‚ nd much nuance in this conversation
but the fact is that the sector has ambitious plans to make a real diƒ erence on
this issue. Unfortunately that side of the story simply isn't being heard.
For energy retailers, of course, 2022 was another testing year, with staƒ forced
to constantly pivot to account for the changing winds of policy and to support
customers in increasingly desperate situations.
Space does not permit me to go into all of the reasons why 2022 was a chal-
lenging time for utilities but despite my negativity, there are positives to grasp.
While collectively the sector's reputation has taken a bashing over the year,
there will have been millions of individual interactions in which the dedication
and genuine compassion of utilities staƒ has been made clear. These small but
meaningful moments may not feel like they are turning a tide but they will have
lasting impact.
As the winners of our Utility Week Awards 2022 (see p32-35) attest, there has
been no let-up in the innovation and ingenuity shown across the sector over the
past year. It was an honour to be able to celebrate these achievements and to
remind ourselves that despite the challenges, teams and individuals across the
sector still have plenty of cause to hold their heads up high.
James Wallin, editor, jameswallin@fav-house.com
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Cisco
A threat without borders:
understanding the cyber risk
facing utilities
https://bit.ly/3TVSyVL
Radius
Building the skills pipeline – how
the water network can get it right
fi rst time
https://bit.ly/3U2xtsJ
Letter from the Editor
James Wallin
Copperleaf
Delivery of RIIO-ED2 in the race to
net zero
https://bit.ly/3EAz975
