Frontier Economics

As the year comes to a close, we’re taking a moment to look back on some of the impactful projects we’ve had the privilege to work on with our incredible clients and partners. From shaping future environmental regulation to addressing black market gambling and advancing policies for net zero, 2024 has been a year of thought-provoking challenges and meaningful collaboration. Thank you to our clients and partners for an incredible year. We’re excited about the opportunities 2025 will bring and look forward to continuing this journey together! Watch our video to see more🎥⬇️ #FrontierEconomics #YearInReview

Local businesses, global impact – how can businesses and communities collaborate on climate action? 🌍 Frontier Economics's Director Matthew Bell sat down to talk with Simon Milton, founder of MovingBeyond, who shares his mission for fostering partnerships between businesses and local communities, to address climate change through local action. In their discussion, Matthew and Simon explore: • The critical role corporations play in tackling climate challenges • Lessons from engaging communities • Why small, individual changes are key to driving system-wide transformation 📌 Click here to read the full interview. https://okt.to/6dEVBM #TheEconomicsOfClimateChange #ClimateAction #Sustainability #CommunityEngagement

#Ofwat published its final determinations yesterday, allowing for £104bn of investment across the #PriceControl period of 2025-2030, spreading the cost of this investment across current and future customers. This investment will go into tackling pollution, improving supply resilience, and supporting the biggest package of water supply projects in decades. What does this mean for water customers? In terms of water bills, Ofwat has allowed for an average bill increase of £31 per year before inflation - a 36% rise from 2025 to 2030. This includes an initial increase of £86 in 2025-26, followed by smaller percentage increases each year thereafter. Frontier advises clients across the water sector. https://okt.to/me0AsT #WaterRegulation

The Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) has delivered its judgment in the case of Justin Le Patourel v BT Group plc. This case presented significant questions in the realm of competition law, in particular in the assessment of excessive and unfair pricing. Martin Duckworth of Frontier Economics provided expert testimony to the Tribunal. Read more from the CAT on their judgment here https://okt.to/cGn5Ae

Germany’s underground gas storage is crucial for energy security, even as we move towards carbon neutrality. But § 35h EnWG, introduced during the Ukraine crisis to prevent an uncontrolled decommissioning of gas storage facilities, needs some fine-tuning. 3 key changes we propose: 🔍 Clearer rules for decommissioning decisions based on a system-wide needs analysis 🔍 Fairer, more predictable compensation 🔍 Defined deadlines and follow-up regulations for decommissioning refusals These tweaks will boost investor confidence and safeguard energy security. Read more. https://okt.to/FhNE65

We’re delighted to be ranked in GCR 100 2025 as ‘outstanding’ economic advisers. 🎉 GCR 100 is an annual listing of the world's top competition practices at law firms and economic consultancies. This achievement reflects our commitment to providing top-tier economic insights and support in competition law across sectors like digital, telecoms, energy, financial services and more. 🌟 https://okt.to/S1NyK5 #GCR100 #CompetitionEconomics #FrontierEconomics #EconomicConsulting

#Erdgasspeicher zur Gewährleistung von #Versorgungssicherheit - In diesem Kurzpapier für Uniper schlagen wir Anpassungen des §35h EnWG für eine sichere Erdgasspeicher-Versorgung in Deutschland vor: https://lnkd.in/e8USwgyi. ⁉️ 𝐖𝐨 𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐠𝐭 𝐝𝐚𝐬 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦? Gaspeicher bleiben auch bei sinkendem Erdgasbedarf noch eine ganze Weile essenziell für eine sichere Energieversorgung. Das hat nicht zuletzt die Energiekrise im Zuge des russischen Angriffskriegs auf die Ukraine gezeigt. Zeitweise kannten selbst meine Kids den täglichen Füllstand der Gasspeicher aus den Nachrichten... Der Business Case für Erdgasspeicher ist allerdings herausfordernd (u.a. negative Sommer Winter Spreads, siehe Grafik im Kommentar). In der Folge scheuen viele Gasspeicherbetreiber für den Weiterbetrieb notwendige Reinvestitionen zu tätigen, und erwägen stattdessen die Speicher stillzulegen und/oder zu #Wasserstoff umzuwidmen. Um eine sichere Gasversorgung zu gewährleisten hat die Bundesregierung in der Energiekrise daher §35h EnWG eingeführt, durch welchen die Bundesnetzagentur befugt wird Stilllegungen von Gasspeichern zu untersagen falls andernfalls die Versorgungssicherheit gefährdet wäre. Als Ökonom sieht man solche ordnungspolitischen Eingriffe per se ungern, aber wenn es gemacht wird sollte es vernünftig gemacht sein. §35h EnWG weist jedoch Defizite bei der praktischen Umsetzung auf, wie wir bereits in unserer Studie zu einem „Finanzierungsmechanismus für den Aufbau von Wasserstoffspeichern“ im Auftrag des BDEW Bundesverband der Energie- und Wasserwirtschaft e.V. angesprochen haben (https://lnkd.in/eZmNeKGV). ⏭️ 𝐖𝐢𝐞 𝐥ä𝐬𝐬𝐭 𝐞𝐬 𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐥ö𝐬𝐞𝐧? Vor diesem Hintergrund hat Uniper Energy Storage uns (Frontier Economics) beauftragt, eine schnelle und möglichst minimal-invasive Möglichkeit zu identifizieren, um diese Defizite des §35h EnWG effektiv zu adressieren. Unsere Ergebnisse in a nutshell: 1️⃣ Prozess zur Stilllegungsprüfung klar definieren 2️⃣ Entschädigungsregeln anpassen 3️⃣ Präzisierung von Fristen & Optionen nach Ablauf der Stilllegungsverweigerung Bei Rückfragen stehen David Bothe, Ann-Katrin Lenz, Gregor B. und ich gerne zur Verfügung. #gasstorage #securityofsupply #hydrogen

Frontier’s guidance, commissioned by the Government’s Evaluation Task Force and the Department for Transport, outlines the key principles of best practice in carrying out a robust impact evaluation of AI interventions in Government: programmes and initiatives using AI systems in central Government or the delivery of public services. Evaluation of AI use in government (including process, impact and value for money questions) is essential to understand the impact of AI systems, improve current interventions, inform future policy development and ensure the Government is accountable to the public. Our guidance describes some of the key challenges and opportunities for evaluating AI interventions, including using experimental methods, providing advice on how to best address them. Read more here: https://okt.to/3E7VT2 #AI #evaluation

We are pleased to announce that we will be hosting a seminar at our Berlin office on Estimating Cartel Damages. This in-person seminar, conducted in German, will take place on 14 January and will be presented by Anna Lane, Martin Streichardt, and Steffen Reinhold. We look forward to welcoming you to this insightful session. Wir laden Sie herzlich zu unserem Seminar zum Thema Kartellschadensschätzung ein, das am 14. Januar in unserem Berliner Büro stattfindet. Die Veranstaltung wird in deutscher Sprache durchgeführt und von Anna Lane, Martin Streichardt und Steffen Reinhold geleitet. Wir freuen uns darauf, Sie bei diesem spannenden Event begrüßen zu dürfen

Meeting the UK’s Clean Energy Superpower Mission requires substantial investment, with private finance playing a vital role. But how much is currently being invested, where, and how? 🌍 Commissioned by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, Frontier developed a pilot UK Landscape of Climate Finance (UK LCF) to track flows of private and public investment into key net zero sectors like power, transport, and heat and buildings. Learn more about how financial flows are shaping the journey to #NetZero 📊 🌱 📌 Click here to read the full report: https://okt.to/07qxug #TheEconomicsOfClimateChange #ClimateAction #Sustainability