National Energy System Operator to support energy security in UK

Britain’s energy system will be planned by a new publicly owned organisation as part of a new more strategic approach to help to deliver clean power by 2030. 

The new National Energy System Operator (NESO) will help connect new generation projects with the electricity grid, working alongside Great British Energy to deploy renewable energy.

It comes as the government reached an agreement with National Grid to acquire the Electricity System Operator, which will be transferred to public ownership. 

Set to start work on 1 October, NESO will be chaired by former E.ON CEO Dr Paul Golby, with Fintan Slye as the chief executive officer.

Energy secretary, Ed Miliband, said: "Today marks a milestone for Britain’s energy system as we bring the system operator into public ownership to provide impartial, whole-system expertise on building a network that is fit for the future.  

"The new National Energy System Operator has a huge role to play in delivering our mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower.   

"We need to move Britain off expensive, insecure fossil fuel markets, and onto clean, cheap homegrown power that we control. This is how we reduce bills in the long term, strengthen our energy independence and support skilled jobs across the country."

Currently, there is no single body responsible for overseeing the strategic planning and design of the country’s electricity and gas networks.  

NESO will fill this gap – breaking down the siloes which currently exist between the planning of electricity and gas systems, with independent oversight for the design of all Great Britain’s energy networks.  

The move will enable investors to build out new energy infrastructure with confidence in how their project will fit into the country’s wider clean energy plan. 

The government’s Mission Control – headed up by Chris Stark – has already given NESO one of its first tasks – commissioning it to provide advice on how the UK will hit its goal to deliver clean power by 2030. 

John Pettigrew, chief executive of National Grid, said: "We look forward to working together with NESO to continue to drive the UK’s energy transition forward at pace; accelerating the decarbonisation of the energy system for the digital, electrified economies of the future."

Commenting on the news, Stew Horne, head of policy at Energy Saving Trust said: “The new publicly owned National Energy System Operator (NESO) is an exciting step forward reflecting the ambition of the UK Government’s clean power target. Bringing the energy system together in one place will help facilitate the transition to a clean energy network, enabling people to see the benefit of renewable energy on the grid through lower energy bills.

“We look forward to seeing more detail on how the NESO will align with GB Energy in the coming weeks.”