Introducing Ofgem’s chief engineer: Peter Bingham
Blog
Peter Bingham
Publication date
Industry sector
- Distribution Network
- Generation and Wholesale Market
- Offshore Transmission Network
- Transmission Network
In May I was appointed as chief engineer for Ofgem, a new role as part of Ofgem’s senior team. The role gives me a mandate to develop Ofgem’s technical capabilities and provide an important focal point both internally and externally on the technical challenges facing the industry.
The role has never been more important than it is now. The sector itself and energy networks in particular are going through major change as highlighted in the plan Ofgem and Government published on July 24 for a smarter, more flexible energy system. We are moving towards a low carbon future, which promises to deliver more sustainable, secure and affordable energy supplies for future generations.
There has been major growth in distributed generation. For example there is now around 26GW of small-scale plant connected to the local electricity distribution networks. Use of new technologies including electricity storage, smart meters, electric vehicles and demand side response (where businesses and homes voluntarily use less energy outside peak times) are also set to increase. They are all reliant on being able to access and use the electricity networks more easily. Networks need to adapt to become more accessible and more dynamic. They will have to balance the need to invest in new capacity against the benefits of a more flexible energy system, where using storage and demand side response can reduce the need to build new grid infrastructure.
The evolving energy future will also affect the gas networks. Reducing demand, decarbonisation of heat, new sources of gas such as hydrogen and biogas, and increased dependency on imports will all have a direct impact on the gas networks and the way they are operated.
Managing all this will be a big challenge for the companies and they will need to re-think how their networks are developed, maintained and operated. Ofgem will play a key role in enabling innovation and change through the next RIIO (Revenue=Incentives+ Innovation+Outputs) price controls from 2021. Alongside Government we will push forward changes to rules and regulations to unlock the benefits for consumers of a smarter more flexible energy system. Engineering and technology will be at the heart of this transformation, so it is essential that we build our technical capabilities to support the industry in meeting this challenge.
I aim to create a more effective technical interface with network companies and other stakeholders so that we can better understand the technical needs of the industry and support the changes that are needed. Having strong technical competence also means we can assess the companies’ plans for overhauling their networks in detail, and challenge them to manage costs as efficiently as possible for customers. This will be especially important once the review process begins for the next price controls for electricity transmission and gas distribution.
I am a chartered engineer with over 25 years’ experience in the energy sector, mainly working for National Grid in a variety of leadership roles, and more recently as a consultant advising clients on investments in flexibility and storage. My experience covers both gas and electricity transmission and distribution in the UK, Ireland and the US. I have held roles in network design, operations, energy policy and regulation. I hope that my appointment, coupled with my breadth of experience, will be the catalyst for a new technical focus within Ofgem to support the challenges that are upon us all. This is a very interesting and challenging role at the heart of the industry, and I am looking forward to getting out there working with industry and other stakeholders.