The Association for Decentralised Energy (ADE) calls for the Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA) to prioritise demand-side participation to transition the UK away from gas dependency.
Sarah Honan, Head of Policy at ADE, emphasises the need for a smarter, more flexible and transparent electricity market that aligns with the renewable energy transition.
Sarah Honan said: “If we don’t place the demand-side at the heart of electricity market reform, we will need to build four new gas plants by 2030. The UK has one of the strongest offshore wind markets in the world.
“And yet, during the energy crisis, we were also one of the countries most exposed to high gas prices, leading to record levels of fuel poverty and debt in the energy system.
“Transforming our energy markets is not a story of balancing the books between fossil fuels, renewables and wires to transport it all – it is a story of how UK homes and businesses are empowered to participate in these markets on equal terms, with equal rewards.
“Subsidies are needed for new forms of generation, but not at the expense of low carbon, flexible, cheap demand-side participation.
“Rather than continuing to focus on a handful of generation assets dotted around the country, we must turn our gaze to the millions of electric vehicles, heat pumps and industrial processes that can balance the books, if only the markets allowed them to.”
