Pragmatism, partnership, and people

In this piece, we take stock on where we now stand after a tumultuous period for the energy markets since Autumn 2021. But beginning, we want to give voice to the sadness our team feels at the terrible human impact arising out the conflict in Ukraine. This clearly is of much greater importance than the energy market effects we spend time as a business analysing. We offer comment on energy market impacts as one would expect us to, but always our thoughts and prayers are with those so badly affected by these terrible events.

Back in September 2021 we wrote a piece entitled “The stakes are higher than they seem”. We focussed on the rising costs of energy and argued that the government needed to map out the contagion of rising energy costs into the economy, and then try to put firebreaks in to ring fence the economic impacts. And in January 2022 we followed this up with more of a prospectus on the best way to re-think the market for an environment where it was clear, even prior to the commencement of the tragic conflict between Russia and Ukraine, that current market design and approaches to balancing energy security, markets, and decarbonisation were creaking somewhat “Wake up call”

To keep reading, please log in to your account or sign up for free

Related thinking

Net zero corporates and ESG

Q1 2023 All-Island Power Market Outlook to 2030 overview

This report provides an annual overview of trends for the All-Ireland Power Market out to 2030 using outputs from Cornwall Insight’s latest forward curve for the All-Island (AI) Single Electricity Market (SEM) covering Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. This publication is based on comprehensive market and asset-level power...

Home supply and services

Generation guaranteed: suppliers increase Smart Export Guarantee rates  

The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG), as the successor to the Feed-in Tariff (FiT) scheme, offers payments to small-scale low-carbon generators for the electricity they export, with export rates and tariffs being set by SEG licensees. Since the new year we have seen notable increases and changes in the export rates...

E-mobility and low carbon

Ending the ICE age: EV Country Attractiveness Index Findings

Over the past decade, electric vehicles (EVs) have become increasingly popular across many of the world’s major economies, with both the eco-conscious and average consumer adding to the rise in sales. This phenomenon has not just appeared from thin air, however, as international climate agreements, national net zero plans, EV...

Net zero corporates and ESG

Help us understand your business decarbonisation challenges

Are you a large business impacted by the challenge of increasing energy costs and decarbonisation targets? If the answer is yes, then we’d love your help to find out more about the challenges you are facing. We recently published an insight paper on the challenging economic climate that businesses are...

Low carbon generation

Understanding the evolution of the Irish electricity markets

The Irish electricity sector has undergone significant change in recent years. The Integrated Single Electricity Market (I-SEM) arrangements introduced in 2018 fundamentally transformed the market framework to maximise competition, facilitate electricity wholesale trading, and incentivise the development of low-carbon generation sources. In parallel the physical system continues to evolve rapidly....

Energy storage and flexibility

Waiting to connect: the problems and solutions for network connection queues (Part 2)

Network connection queues continue to be a notable topic of interest as many generators face significant delays to project development – an issue that is directly conflicting with net zero ambitions and recent focuses on strengthening domestic energy supplies. In Part 1 of our two-part series on connection queues we...

Energy storage and flexibility

What is Liquefied natural gas (LNG) and how did it help UK and Europe this winter?

What is Liquefied natural gas (LNG)? Natural gas that has been cooled down to a liquid form is known as liquefied natural gas (LNG). The cooling process shrinks the volume of natural gas making it easier and safer to store and ship overseas. Natural gas is a fossil fuel which...

Energy storage and flexibility

Waiting to connect: the problems and solutions for network connection queues

The number of grid applications has risen significantly in recent years, resulting in increased pressure on the electricity networks to facilitate new connections. In its Energy Security Strategy, the UK government set out ambitions for 95% of electricity to be sourced from low carbon generation by 2030, and for the...