go to top scroll for more

Projects: Projects for Investigator
Reference Number	NIA_UKPN0079
Title	Collaborative Local Energy Optimisation (CLEO)
Status	Started
Energy Categories	Other Cross-Cutting Technologies or Research(Energy system analysis) 50%; Other Power and Storage Technologies(Electricity transmission and distribution) 50%;
Research Types	Applied Research and Development 100%
Science and Technology Fields	ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (Electrical and Electronic Engineering) 100%
UKERC Cross Cutting Characterisation	Sociological economical and environmental impact of energy 25%; Systems Analysis related to energy R&D (Other Systems Analysis) 25%; Systems Analysis related to energy R&D (Energy modelling) 50%;
Principal Investigator	Project Contact No email address given UKPN London Power Networks plc
Award Type	Network Innovation Allowance
Funding Source	Ofgem
Start Date	01 March 2022
End Date	31 July 2024
Duration	ENA months
Total Grant Value	£2,520,000
Industrial Sectors	Power
Region	London
Programme	Network Innovation Allowance
Investigators	Principal Investigator	Project Contact , UKPN London Power Networks plc (99.998%)
	Other Investigator	Project Contact , Eastern Power Networks plc (0.001%) Project Contact , South Eastern Power Networks plc (0.001%)
	Industrial Collaborator	Project Contact , UK Power Networks (0.000%)
Web Site	https://smarter.energynetworks.org/projects/NIA_UKPN0079
Objectives	The Net Zero Navigator project will develop a digital tool that allows LAs and their energy planners to layer local input such as decarbonisation strategies and action plans, local market trends, social inclusion policies and transport plans upon our network infrastructure data to develop optimum LAEP options for their communities and accelerate their local energy planning. It will provide the foundational features and functions that will support UK Power Networks evolving three-tiered support service and will allow our growing LAEP team to assess LAEPs, track progress, develop action plans and deliver investments where a prescribed level of certainty is achieved. It will achieve these outcomes by allowing LAs and other energy system stakeholders to rapidly evaluate different approaches to the deployment of Low Carbon Technologies (LCT), by digitally and geo-spatially modelling the relative impacts and determine the approach that would best suit that LA, their communities and potential investors. By streamlining the process and the speed by which they can evaluate different options and scenarios they can learn about the energy system by testing options digitally. In addition, a social impact assessment capability will be included allowing LAEP options to be sensitivity tested against their impact on social considerations such as poverty and vulnerable customers. The outputs from the tool will facilitate efficient and effective development of an LAEP which, in turn, will increase confidence in plans and better inform network operators load related expenditure.Development of the tool will be achieved through deep and ongoing engagement with LAs, their energy planners and other energy system stakeholders. To ensure high engagement of stakeholders throughout the process an agile and incremental software development approach will be used. This will ensure that LAs and other energy system stakeholders can regularly test the solution being developed to ensure it is fit for purpose. After requirements are gathered and prioritised in the Discovery phase (Phase 1), a minimum viable product (MVP) will be developed in the Alpha phase (Phase 2) after which the remaining essential components of the solution will be delivered in the Beta phase (Phase 3). A modular and flexible design will be adopted to ensure the tool can be further improved and developed as the LAEP service evolves and the team grows throughout the RIIO-ED2 period. Phase 1 – DiscoveryEngagement with LAs, their energy planners, other energy system stakeholders and software vendors to understand and prioritise requirements, draft a product roadmap, access market capabilities and different delivery approachesForm a user group of LAs, their energy planners, and other energy system stakeholders to work in close collaboration with UK Power Networks and the chosen software vendor to deliver a fit for purpose solutionIdentify and prioritise the data sets required to support the development of an LAEP and understand how they can be sourcedRequest for proposal issued, software vendor selected, and contract drafted and agreed with vendor to deliver the digital toolEstablish working practices for agile software delivery with the user group and vendor to ensure the benefits of agile working are realised.Phase 2 – AlphaImplement and test an MVP that will include a reduced subset of the full solution requirements and data sets that will enable us to assess LA plans and readiness against our three-tier framework.Ongoing engagement and LAs, their energy planners, and other energy system stakeholders to ensure that what we deliver is usable and meets their needsPhase 3 – BetaValidate the software vendors ability to deliver a solution and adjust the ways of working necessary for the remainder of the developmentApply any necessary adaptations to the requirements, software development team and product roadmap based on further engagement and feedbackWorking LAEP tool developed that includes the workflow, visualisation, geospatial and data ingestion capabilities necessary for option-engineering and confidence framework assessment in three key domains: heat, transport and distributed generationFull testing and implementation of the solution and handover of the tool and product roadmap to the LAEP Team function  The objectives of the Net Zero Navigator project are to:Deliver a digital tool that: a. Allows LAs and their energy planners to layer local input such as decarbonisation strategies and action plans, local market trends, social inclusion policies, transport plans upon our network infrastructure data to develop optimum LAEP options for their communitiesb. Enables LAs to learn the energy system and inform their LAEP through experimenting and trialling different options digitally using an intuitive, graphical interface that enables LA to self-serve as their knowledge increasesc. Supports our evolving three-tiered support service and allows our LAEP team to assess LAEPs, track progress, develop action plans and deliver investments where a prescribed level of certainty is achievedDevelop, publish and maintain a prioritised product roadmap for the digital tool that goes beyond the scope of this project and is informed through engagement with LAs, their energy planners and other energy system stakeholders and allows all stakeholders to feedback and commentIdentify and prioritise the core planning datasets required by LAs, their energy planners and other energy system stakeholders and make this available within the tool as well as outside of the tool for those who wish to adopt their own toolsetCapture all learning and insights from delivery of the tool and through engagement with LAs, their energy planners and other energy system stakeholders and make these available using the most appropriate format and channels availableFully integrate the tool with our evolving BaU processes and procedures and ensure that our LAEP team is fully versed in its use before it is made more widely availableProduce and publish a draft proposal for wider GB adoption that includes endorsement from LAs, a handbook for deployment, a pricing framework and methodology, and recommendations for next steps
Abstract	We will provide core planning datasets via an on-line, self-service energy planning tool to support the planning process for our local authorities, helping them make the best choices for their communities. This local area energy planning self-service tool will allow local authorities to layer local input such as decarbonisation strategies and action plans, local market trends, social inclusion policies, transport plans and so forth upon our network infrastructure data to develop options for their communities.
Publications	(none)
Final Report	(none)
Added to Database	14/10/22