Utility Week

UTILITY WEEK | 2ND - 8TH MARCH 2018 | 17 Policy & Regulation This week Labour would keep Britain in the EU IEM Party would seek continued membership to help support development of low-carbon energy sector Jeremy Corbyn has pledged that Labour would keep Britain in the EU internal energy market (IEM) and the Euratom nuclear co-operation treaty. In a landmark speech on Monday, setting out his party's stance on the UK's future trading relationships following Brexit, the opposition leader said it was in Britain's interests to remain part of Euratom. He said: "We will want to remain a part of agencies like Euratom, regulating nuclear materials in energy and health sectors." The Labour leader also used his speech to signal Labour would seek continued UK membership of the IEM to help support the development of the low-carbon energy sector. He said barrier-free trade of low-carbon goods is necessary to underpin the growth of the UK's low-carbon and renewable energy sectors. "These include eco-design and energy labelling standards, greenhouse gas emission standards for vehi- cles, the internal energy market, construction product standards, chemicals regulation and nuclear safety and safeguards. "We can only tackle climate change, pollution and environmental degradation by working together and many of our closest allies in that struggle are in Europe," Corbyn said. But Corbyn said Labour would seek to negotiate "protections, clarifications or exemptions" from the wider EU single market to restore public ownership in industries such as energy. DB ENERGY BEIS 'failed to keep track of RHI support' The government has failed to keep track of the sums paid out under the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scheme to encourage the uptake of low- carbon heating systems, the National Audit Office (NAO) has concluded. The public spending watch- dog's progress report on the RHI also says the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has failed to achieve value for money from the scheme, take-up of which has been lower than originally anticipated. The scandal surrounding overpayments from the Northern Ireland version of the scheme triggered the collapse of the province's power sharing execu- tive a year ago. The NAO report, which was published on 23 February, con- cludes: "It [BEIS] does not have a reliable estimate of the amount it has overpaid to participants that have not complied with the regu- lations, nor the impact of par- ticipants gaming them, which could accumulate to reduce the scheme's value significantly." ENERGY ENW: 'Give DNOs efficiency powers' Electricity North West (ENW) has urged the government to give distribution network operators (DNOs) greater powers to help boost the energy efficiency of customers. The firm says allowing DNOs to fund domestic energy efficiency measures using their RIIO spending allowances would aid the fight against fuel poverty, ensure emissions targets are met and assist the creation of a smarter, more flexible power grid. "The structure of the stand- ard network allowance means we cannot, within the current regulatory rules, justify a busi- ness case for domestic energy efficiency measures," said ENW commercial strategy and support director Paul Bircham. ENERGY Ofgem penalises DCC for go-live fails Ofgem has docked £4.7 million from the Data and Communica- tions Company's (DCC) allowed revenue for 2017/18 for its failure to meet its two go-live deadlines for the smart meter network. Announcing the penalty in its final price control decision for 2016/17, it also noted that many customers are "unhappy with the level of transparency and influence they have over DCC's costs and performance". The regulator said it would "fully support" their requests for greater engagement. Corbyn: also wants to remain part of Euratom Political Agenda David Blackman "There is sensitivity about costly projects after Hinkley" It is now well over a year since the government was advised by former energy minister Charles Hendry to give the go-ahead to the Swansea Bay tidal lagoon. There is a lot of scepticism across Whitehall about the project, which would require a guaranteed price of around £120/MWh to get off the ground. Even Lord Deben, the former environment secretary and now chair of the Committee on Climate Change, has questioned the project's cost-effectiveness. Civil servants are shuttling back and forth between London and Cardiff to negotiate. Ministers are sensitive about pouring bill payers' cash into expensive energy projects fol- lowing the brickbats the Hinkley deal has attracted. But they will be reluctant to put the boot in to a project that offers such substantial benefits in south Wales, where feelings still run high about the decimation of the coal industry by an earlier Tory government. When the project failed to merit a mention in the Clean Growth Strategy, it looked dead in the water, pardon the pun. However, in the new year, the devolved Welsh government rode to the project's rescue with an offer of financial support; it has substantial, cross-party backing in Wales. A number of sites off the Welsh coast have been identified as suitable for lagoons, which its backers claim could be delivered more cheaply than the Swansea testbed. The Welsh government has refused to state publicly how much it would be prepared to offer, but a figure of £200 million has been quoted in Parliament.

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