Lord Holmes’ Post

An interesting read, providing a lot more insight into the state of play with Thames Water. Suffice to say it's a mess of heavy hitting executives, shareholders, regulators and government interest which makes for a very tricky situation to navigate. https://lnkd.in/geJ6fSQx #waterjobs #engineering #watercareers

Top stories today 💧 Thames ‘hobbling on’ in hope of government intervention https://buff.ly/3SvhmpD An intervention from government is now the only realistic way for Thames Water to solve its financial woes. That is according to a source close to the situation, who added that investors are increasingly unlikely to put more money into the company in its current guise. It comes after another bruising week for the UK’s largest water company. 🧑⚖️ GB Energy launch proves ‘Siemens Law’ always wins https://buff.ly/4d2bLzt “Siemens Law” may continue to reign supreme in UK energy policy, but factories aren’t the only game in town. Writing for Utility Week, former Downing Street advisor Tara Singh argues that the challenge ahead for the government lies in crafting policies that balance job creation with cost-effectiveness and rapid implementation. 💷 Government’s 2030 targets ‘still unlikely’ despite beefed up CfD budget https://buff.ly/46wwKrn The government’s ambition for a clean power grid by 2030 is still unlikely to be realised despite a beefed up Contracts for Difference (CfD) budget, industry experts have warned. It comes as the government announced that it is boosting the budget for allocation round six (AR6) by £500 million compared to the overall budget originally set by the previous government in March. Yet analysts at Aurora Energy Research believe the increased budget is unlikely to fully deliver The Labour Party's manifesto pledge around increasing renewable generation.

💬 CBI (Confederation of British Industry), Chief Executive, Rain Newton-Smith comments on the Chancellor's, Rt Hon Rachel Reeves's, speech today: “Businesses will be encouraged to hear the Chancellor speak clearly and passionately about making growth the defining priority of government and to committing to the three pillars of stability, investment and delivery needed to achieve it. With improvements to public services and living standards dependent on a step change from the sluggish levels of growth we’re currently seeing, it’s clear that the government needs to hit the ground running. “Firms will welcome the Chancellor wasting no time in committing to tackle the burdensome and time-consuming planning processes that are holding back critical investments in infrastructure and housebuilding. Making sure we have the planning officers and coordinated oversight we need to forge ahead with projects is vital to ensuring a consistent, long-term approach that will boost investor confidence. “Better coordination across central government, and between Whitehall and UK regions and nations, on areas like infrastructure will not only boost connectivity, but help us press ahead with our net zero transition and highlight investment opportunities across every part of the country. The CBI (Confederation of British Industry) has long argued that removing the ban on onshore wind would green our energy supply and help the UK take advantage of a huge green growth opportunity, so it’s welcome to see that being delivered so swiftly. “While government can lay the foundations for growth, it’s business that will bring the innovation, ideas, and investment to make them a reality. That’s why we welcome Labour’s openness to working with business to really go for growth and bring much needed momentum back to our economy. The CBI stands ready to play a leading role in that partnership for prosperity and in delivering for people across the country.”

FUTURE IRELAND FUND AND INFRASTRUCTURE, CLIMATE AND NATURE FUND ACT 2024 Act 16/2024. An Act to provide for the establishment of a fund to be known as the Future Ireland Fund for the purpose of supporting, in a consistent and sustainable manner, State expenditure in any year from 2041; to provide for the establishment of a fund to be known as the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund for the purpose of supporting State expenditure, in 2026 or any year thereafter, in the event of a significant deterioration, or likely such deterioration, in the economic or fiscal position of the State and for the purpose of supporting State expenditure, between 2026 and 2030, on certain environmental projects; to provide for the control and management of those funds by the National Treasury Management Agency; to provide for the transfer of certain assets to those funds; to provide for the dissolution of the National Surplus (Exceptional Contingencies) Reserve Fund and the transfer of the assets of that fund to the Future Ireland Fund and the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund; for those and other purposes to amend the National Treasury Management Agency Act 1990, the National Treasury Management Agency (Amendment) Act 2014 and certain other enactments and to repeal the National Surplus (Reserve Fund for Exceptional Contingencies) Act 2019; and to provide for related matters. ✍️ Signed: 18 June Read the full act here ➡️ https://lnkd.in/dXuWdbbC Published by: Law Society of Ireland #climate #infrastructure #legalupdate #act #Ireland

To break the UK’s cycle of chronic underinvestment, Government must consider new, progressive models of investment. Matt Bevington's blog sets out why new, progressive public-private partnerships should be one of them, summarising his new 'Rebuilding the Nation' report for FGF. Read the blog: https://lnkd.in/eGFzEBWB #infrastructure #PPP #investment

Some interesting points in here: my two questions would be: 1) If Government intervention is the only way that Thames Water can survive, why are the directors not facing wrongful trading charges if that does happen, as technically it's failed and the only solution being a government bailout? 2) When will people wake up that fully decarbonising the grid by 2030 is impossible? The grid infrastructure will simply not be there, I heard of a 32MW BESS site being told just last week that their initial connection date of no sooner than 2029 was being pushed back to 2037, and it's not even gone into NGESO PP yet. This is all down to under investment in NGESO over decades - mark my words there's going to be a call to take NGESO into state ownership - then we'll see that the bill to bring it up to standard for Zero Carbon will be £100Bn or even £200Bn, and we (the taxpayer) will have to pick up the tab.

My CMS UK colleague Robert Garden and Deloitte's Liz Wells MRTPI on steps the new Labour government may take in its first 100 days to meet objectives that include quicker delivery of new housing south of the border. Including some new housing development in the NSIP (Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects) regime could help unlock private sector house building at pace, but proceeds partly in the electoral hope that much NIMBYism will become YIMBYism. It will be interesting to see whether the Scottish Government will take similar steps, and also whether it is prepared to remove blockers to widespread BTR investment in Scotland. #CMSlaw #futurefacinglaw #planning #housing #buildtorent #BTR

The Chancellor Rachel Reeves has delivered Labour’s first budget in 14 years. Our Public Affairs and Stakeholder Engagement team has been taking a closer look at the documents and highlighted some key takeaways on energy, infrastructure and investment:   🛢️ 𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗟𝗲𝘃𝘆 (𝗘𝗣𝗟): Rate increase to 38%, with the removal of the EPL investment allowance (except for decarbonisation). A new sunset extension to 2030, plus tax relief for Carbon Capture Usage & Storage-related decommissioning funds. 🇬🇧 𝗚𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 (𝗚𝗕𝗘): £100m allocated in 2025-26 for clean energy projects, with GBE’s headquarters to be set up in Aberdeen. The National Wealth Fund will lead initial investment activities, leveraging its resources and pipeline. 🪨 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗯𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 (𝗖𝗖𝗨𝗦): £3.9bn set aside for the first UK CCUS clusters, enabling investment and jobs in clean energy. ⚡️ 𝗛𝘆𝗱𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗲𝗻 & 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆: Support for hydrogen production contracts, including projects in Cromarty and Whitelee, plus £134m for port infrastructure for offshore wind. Additionally, £163m will extend the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund to further support decarbonisation. 🏭 𝗡𝘂𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿: £2.7bn to continue developing Sizewell C, with final investment decisions expected in the Spring. 🏡 𝗪𝗮𝗿𝗺 𝗛𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻: An initial £1bn will be allocated next year towards making homes cleaner and cheaper to run, with a further £3.4bn for heat decarbonisation and energy efficiency through 2027-28. 💷 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 & 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘀: Additional £6.6bn for devolved governments, including £3.4bn for Scotland, £1.7bn for Wales, and £1.5bn for Northern Ireland, to drive local economic growth.

Top stories today (£) 💧 Overseas investors are ‘spooked’ by Thames Water situation https://buff.ly/3B12tWs Potential overseas investors in large UK infrastructure projects have been “spooked” by the situation at Thames Water. That is the view of a senior figure at the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA), who has warned that the issues with Thames, along with the scaling back of HS2 and the increased tax burden in the Budget, is making investors wary. ⚡ Transmission owners team up to unlock delivery efficiencies https://buff.ly/3Vd972N GB Transmission operators have taken a significant new step to drive efficiencies in infrastructure delivery through adaption of common information management standards. At Utility Week Forum, National Grid Electricity Transmission, SP Transmission and SSEN Transmission , founded a new initiative called IM4Power in collaboration with supply chain partners from organisations including Hitachi Energy, Siemens and Balfour Beatty plc. 💡 Utility Warehouse CEO: Lack of trust in suppliers risks jeopardising net zero targets https://buff.ly/3Z6bANO Utility Warehouse’s chief executive has warned that the UK could miss its net zero targets if energy suppliers fail to gain the trust of their customers. Speaking to Utility Week following the publication of the company's half-year results, Stuart Burnett warned that messages around tariff innovation “will fall flat” if consumers do not trust their supplier and therefore “we won’t get the progress” on the transition.

The market for low carbon technologies is rapidly growing. The pace of innovation is accelerating and there is little regulatory protection for consumers. Additionally, information is often confusing or difficult to navigate, causing consumers to find it challenging to understand. We are at a stage in the development lifecycle where early adopters will pave the way for mass roll out of these solutions. Ultimately, we need all consumers to benefit from affordable and accessible installs if net zero is going to be delivered in a fair way (in just 308 months......). #netzero #innovation #lowcarbontechnologies #energytransition #sustainablefuture