Lawrence Slade, CEO, ENA, which represents the UK's energy networks, said:
“We have been clear that a balanced approach needs to be taken to decarbonising heat and in addressing the decarbonisation of those businesses, and the jobs they provide, that are currently reliant on natural gas. Moving forward, the UK must continue working from the basis that no one solution is suitable for all circumstances. It’s clear network operators will need to employ multiple solutions to decarbonise heat, from electrification to hydrogen and other forms of heat provision, offer consumers real choice in how they heat their homes and ensure the UK can sustainably heat residences and run businesses over the coming years.
“We shouldn’t ignore that while electrification will have a huge part to play in this, current scenarios envisage a role for gas and any plan will need to address how we can sustainably and economically replace the amount of energy for heat the UK requires.
“It is also right that today’s report looks at the costs of decommissioning and provides insights that the energy sector requires to make decisions that will affect millions of consumers. Gas Networks are already doing huge amounts to repurpose networks and deliver for customers, though investors still need long term certainty to provide future stability and energy security for customers.”
Notes to editor
- Energy networks are set to spend and invest around £60bn between 2021 and 2028 to meet the challenge of delivering energy to communities safely, sustainably and reliably. We need greater certainty in long term decision-making and planning, to ensure the right infrastructure, can be delivered in the right place, at the right time.
- The full Assessment can be found online
About us
Energy Networks Association (ENA) is the industry body representing the energy networks. Our members include every major electricity network operator in the UK. The electricity networks are at the heart of the energy transition. They directly employ more than 26,000 people in the UK, including 1,500 apprentices. They are spending and investing £33bn in our electricity grids over the coming years, to ensure safe, reliable and secure energy supplies for the millions of homes and businesses reliant on power every day.
Press contacts
You can contact ENA's press office by emailing press@energynetworks.org. For urgent or out-of-hours enquiries from journalists, please call 0204 599 7691.