Energy sector wants net zero mandate for Ofgem to remove investment barriers

Trade associations representing the UK energy industry have called on the UK Government to empower regulator Ofgem with a net zero mandate, otherwise progress towards meeting the UK’s net zero goals could stall, they warned.

With a mandate, Ofgem can remove barriers to investment in the low-cost, low-carbon energy system the energy sector and environmental groups are all working towards, they argued. 

"The Energy Security Bill is the prime opportunity to deliver this change," they wrote in an open letter to the government.

Alongside calls for a net zero duty, the letter urges Government to publish the long-awaited Strategic Policy Statement to Ofgem so the energy regulator can properly incorporate net zero into its decision making.

Lawrence Slade, the chief executive of Energy Networks Association (below), which represents the UK’s energy network operators, said that “the foundations of our future energy system are already being built and the regulatory decisions that determine our ability to meet the UK’s decarbonisation targets are being made by Ofgem today."

He stressed that “empowering Ofgem with a net zero mandate will enable strategic investment, removing a clear barrier to investment in the low-cost, low-carbon energy system we are all working towards.”