Commercial and market outlook

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | Getting the balance right – a new approach to policy costs?

    A new report from research consultancy Public First has argued that the government should move the costs of energy policy from being heavily on electricity bills onto government expenditure. In this 'Chart of the week', we look at the four models for rebalancing put forward in the report. Options for...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | UK carbon emissions were down 10% in 2020

    BEIS published its provisional 2020 UK greenhouse gas emissions figures on 25 March. In this 'Chart of the week', we consider the significant impact of COVID-19 and the resulting lockdowns in the UK on carbon emissions last year. Carbon emissions in the UK are provisionally estimated to have fallen by...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | Nearly 6mn customers switched electricity supplier in 2020

    This article was originally published as part of a larger piece in Energy Spectrum, published on 25 January 2021. To find out more about a subscription to Energy Spectrum, contact Nick on n.palmer@cornwall-insight.com. This week's 'Chart of the week' discusses the latest electricity switching figures from Energy UK, published on 21...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | White Paper majors on fairness and affordability

    December saw the release of the long-awaited, several times delayed Energy White Paper (EWP). In this 'Chart of the week', we consider the changes the EWP has in mind for the retail market and its governance. The average household’s dual fuel energy bill in 2019 was similar to 2010. However,...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | Saying goodbye to 2020

    While lockdown may have been the most used word overall in 2020, in the energy sector net zero would certainly give it a run for its money. The raft of policy announcements, particularly in the last few weeks, will lead to a dramatic change in sector especially with moves to...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | Survey reveals public underestimate role of heating in emissions

    In this week's 'Chart of the week', we look at the findings published by BEIS from a survey of the British public on the transition to a low-carbon heating future on 1 September. Transforming Heat – Public Attitudes Research reveals that there is strong public support for carbon reduction policies,...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | Ramping up: demand levels, power prices and the outlook ahead

    With the recent easing of lockdown measures allowing the re-opening of many parts of the economy, in this Chart of the Week, we take a look at how his has impacted electricity demand and power prices. GB power prices for baseload electricity in recent weeks would suggest that the market...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | Demand returning to normal?

    At the beginning of the week, 15 June, non-essential business was allowed to open. This follows a removal of lockdown restrictions which have meant many more people returning to work. This week's 'Chart of the week' explores how these changes affected electricity demand.

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | The wind of change: Germany’s future in the air

    Germany's newly installed wind capacity increased 260% in quarter one of 2020 compared to the same period last year. However, this increase is still marginal in the context of previous years and Germany’s wider renewable targets. January to March this year saw the installation of 107 new turbines, according to...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | ES Catapult: shifting energy vectors in net zero

    In this week’s Chart of the week, we pick out a chart from ES Catapult which, in its report Innovating to Net Zero published earlier this month, presented two distinct pathways to a 2050 net energy system: centralised (Clockwork) and decentralised (Patchwork). In a Patchwork pathway, central government takes less of a...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Pixie Chart of the week | Future H2 costs explored by Hydrogen Council

    On 20 January, the Hydrogen Council issued its latest report Path to Hydrogen Competitiveness – a Cost Perspective, published on 20 January. The report compares the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of low-carbon and renewable hydrogen applications against specific low-carbon alternatives. 35 applications across four sectors are compared in the...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Pixie Chart of the week | It’s electrifying! You gotta shape up…

    Electrification of the transport, building and industrial sectors could deliver a drop of 60% in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions between 2020 and 2050 in developed countries like the UK. Bloomberg New Energy Finance’s (BloombergNEF) report Sector Coupling in Europe: Powering Decarbonisation, published on 11 February, stated a further 5% of...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Pixie Chart of the week | Under pressure: OGAs role in meeting net zero

    Under growing pressure from the UK’s 2050 Net Zero target, we are beginning to see the release of industry strategies detailing pathways to zero emissions. Among these is the Oil and Gas Authority’s (OGAs) UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) strategy. It surrounds the idea that UKCS oil and gas will remain...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | It’s the final countdown…2109 in review

    As 2020 approaches we trade in our reports for gift wrapping and our coffee is set aside for mulled wine. Let’s take a moment to reflect on the topics of 2019 that have garnered the most interest from our complimentary Chart of the Week publication. Our popular weekly publications are...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Pixie Chart of the week | The only way to find what I left behind, I’ve got to double back again

    Our popular weekly publications are an opportunity for our experts to detail a wide range of issues in a succinct and visually engaging manner. In 2019, we published charts on such diverse topics as electric vehicles (EVs), flexibility, energy efficiency, hydrogen, heat, and the GB water markets. In this week’s...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | Bang for your buck: consumer cost of policies

    In this week's Chart of the Week, we consider the cost for consumers of decarbonisation policies, as Ofgem recently published its State of the Market 2019 Report on 3 October, providing a comprehensive overview of the state of competition in the retail and wholesale energy markets. The report also assessed how...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | Woah, we’re half way there – H119 wholesale price review

    Half way through 2019, wholesale power and gas contracts have tumbled, with day-ahead NBP gas falling to a two year low, down 58% in six months. In this Chart of the Week, we explore some of these highlights from the first half of the year and see why prices across the wholesale power...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Pixie Chart of the week | ESC reimagines carbon pricing to drive decarbonisation

    In this Pixie Chart of the Week, we look at a study by Oxford Energy Associates commissioned by Energy Systems Catapult (ESC), Rethinking Decarbonisation Incentives: Near-Term Options to Address Low-Priced Emissions. It provides fresh insight into how carbon policy could be altered to deliver stronger outcomes in the lead up to 2030. 

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Pixie Chart of the week | CARES Publishes Financial Analysis for Renewables Projects

    In this week’s Pixie Chart of the week, following the closure of the Feed-in Tariff (FiT) scheme to new generation on 31 March 2019, Community and Renewable Energy Scotland (CARES) has produced guidelines to help assess returns for investment in small-scale renewable energy. The CARES Project Viability Modelling Post Feed-in Tariff investigates the economic...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Pixie Chart of the week | Global energy demand to plateau around 2030: McKinsey

    Consultancy McKinsey published its Global Energy Perspective 2019 in January 2019. It examines energy trends over the period to 2050 under a single reference scenario. Key trends detailed in the report include that electricity consumption will double by 2050 and gas use will continue to grow. However, McKinsey predicts that global primary...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | Chart of the Year 2018

    As the year draws to an end and we trade papers for gift wrap, colleagues for family and coffee for mulled wine, tis’ the season to take a moment and reflect on the topics of 2018 that have garnered the highest interest from our complimentary Chart of the Week publication. Our popular...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Pixie Chart of the week | ECO LA Flex shows mixed uptake from suppliers

    Recent data from Ofgem, published in October 2018, shows mixed levels of uptake from ECO (Energy Company Obligation) obligated energy suppliers. It highlights a 50:50 split between those suppliers who have met approximately 100% of their LA Flex (Local Authority Flexible Eligibility) allowance and those who have not. LA Flex...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Chart of the week | Labour plans unprecedented renewables expansion

    The Labour Party held its annual conference in Liverpool on 23-26 September. While much of the attention focused on the party’s nationalisation plans, Labour also pledged a level of renewables deployment thus-far unimagined by one of the larger political parties. As well as headline goals of a 60% emissions reduction...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Pixie Chart of the week | The need for a route to market for small-scale generation

    On 19 July, for the first time BEIS stated that it intends to close the export tariff for new small-scale generation. It has not ruled out intervention beyond 1 April 2019, but has placed the onus firmly on industry to demonstrate why a guaranteed route to market has merit.