January's announcement that the US government planned a 30% tax on the import of solar panels might have left the US market questioning the future of their clean energy industry. But, for those outside of the US, this dark cloud could have a silver lining as manufacturers look to increase market share elsewhere.
By Maria Connolly, Partner and head of Energy and Renewables at TLT
Kevin Stickney, Managing Director of Erda Energy, asks why we’re lagging on decarbonising heat in the UK and argues it’s time for the industry to up its game.
Since 2008, the UK has been the world leader in offshore wind, with more installed capacity than any other country. Could it translate that domestic achievement into export success and become the supplier of choice for the global offshore wind market?
By James Young, Chief Technology Officer at JDR Cable Systems, Part of the TFKable Group
The electric utility industry is undergoing a major transformation driven by new sources of energy generation (solar and wind power), consumer demand for faster and more affordable services and cyber security. The emerging modern grid demands accurate data and electric network information. As a result, managing data to harvest insights and forecast more accurately has huge potential to optimise operations. Utilities must therefore overcome current constraints and limitations to ensure high quality operational data is available.
By Dan Beasley, Director, Utilities, Cyient
Last year’s disruption in the utility sector, from regulation to renewable sources of energy, will accelerate in 2018 as leading utilities aggressively pursue digital transformation.
By Saul Zambrano, Global Industry Director for Energy and Utilities at Software AG.
The past few months should leave little doubt the UK government is firmly in support of demand response for the grid.
By Ian Larive, Investment Director, Low Carbon
By Scott Taylor, VP at Corero Network Security
The Internet of Things represents a new reality for the energy sector, improving how we manage our power distribution and consumption, and enabling a more flexible and efficient energy grid. This has introduced a range of benefits, including a greater flexibility to accommodate new energy sources, better management of assets as well as greater reliability of services. But as operating systems have become increasingly connected to the Internet, it has also increased the potential for damaging cyber attacks such as Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS).
By Scott Taylor, VP at Corero Network Security
Matthew Hallé, Managing Director, Singular
The workforce is changing. New generations value flexibility in how they are engaged, hired and managed – so companies are having to adapt to stay relevant. The gig economy has emerged as a focal point in this transition, with workers taking on a variety of assignments – or gigs – for multiple parties rather than long-term employments.
Doug Stewart, Chief Executive of Green Energy UK
When five former energy regulators, including Professor Stephen Littlechild, and the electricity regulator for the 10 years post-privatisation, are questioning the regulation of the energy market (as they did in 2015 as part of the CMA Inquiry), I tend to listen and take stock. Littlechild & Co said it was time to dial-down the level of regulation in the UK energy sector. Whereas there’s a body of opinion, among consumer groups, some politicans and sections of the press who would suggest that even more regulation is required. In my world, I’d call it intervention.
By Darren Farrar, energy segment manager at Schneider Electric
Partly thanks to the declining price of Lithium Ion (Li-Ion), battery storage technology stands on the precipice of strong growth.