The company has launched a public consultation and is inviting input on a number of key strategy documents which explain how it will help the North West decarbonise.
With the UK aiming to end its contribution to global warming by bringing carbon emissions to net zero by 2050, in the North West, some local authorities are aiming to go faster and deliver net zero by as early as 2038.
It’s expected that demand for electricity will double as customers move away from carbon heavy fossil fuels such as petrol and diesel, and start to use cleaner forms of energy for heat and transport, such as electric vehicles. As well as an increase in electricity use, more customers want to connect their own local renewable generation to the electricity network such as solar panels and wind turbines. All of this will have a dramatic effect on the existing electricity infrastructure.
Engineering and technical director Steve Cox said, “The energy market is currently undergoing a huge transformation. Our customers’ needs are changing rapidly, proven by the rising number of electric vehicles on the roads and the number of customers who want to sell their locally-generated energy to other customers in the area.
“Network operators like Electricity North West will play a key role in this transformation. It’s our responsibility to provide a smart and flexible electricity distribution system which will meet these evolving needs and support the region’s economic development.
“We are inviting our customers, businesses, the community and local authorities to review and comment on three new strategy documents to understand their expectations and gain their feedback on our approach. The documents explain how we will meet the challenges of the net zero future while ensuring bills remain affordable for our customers and supplies remain reliable.”
The company’s ‘DSO strategy’, ‘Analysis of DSO functions’ and its ‘Grid digitalisation & data strategy’ describe the progress made to date, and set out the next steps being taken on the transition to ‘distribution system operation’ (DSO). This is an industry-wide initiative to drive the changes needed to achieve net zero carbon emissions in the UK.
You can review all three documents and respond to the consultation surveys here.
The consultation closes on Wednesday 9 September 2020.
