On January 26, the European Commission (“EC”) launched a consultation resulting from the ongoing discussions around the reform of the European Union’s (“EU”) electricity market. Cracks in the market design became visible after a drastic reduction in the importation of Russian gas, prompting a re-assessment of the structural shortcomings of the market. This consultation primarily … Read more

The post below was first published on our Policy Matters blog. On her third day as Prime Minister, Liz Truss announced an unprecedented £150 billion support package for households and business alongside emergency electricity market interventions which will feed into a more fundamental ongoing review. The EU also announced radical proposals. We take a look at … Read more

On 18 July 2022 the Government released a consultation on options for all non-retail electricity markets in Great Britain: the wholesale market, balancing mechanism and ancillary services. Everything is on the table from the most radical to the incremental. Investors and market participants should pay attention. Days after the new Energy Security Bill was introduced … Read more

On 6 July 2022, a day of significant political uncertainty, the Government published its long-awaited Energy Security Bill. Notwithstanding the current political turmoil, this is expected to survive to become the most wide-ranging legislative reform of the UK’s energy market for several years. The Energy Security Bill (Bill) was published and introduced to Parliament for … Read more

The Queen’s Speech delivered on 10 May 2022 announced a new energy bill (the “Bill“), which expands on the UK Government’s Energy Security Strategy, announced in April 2022. The Bill aims to reduce the UK’s exposure to the volatility of global gas prices, focuses on developing an energy system based on renewable energy and low … Read more

The London planning team at Herbert Smith Freehills has a new blog called Energy and Infrastructure Consenting Notes, focused on infrastructure planning in the UK. The team has promoted some of the biggest and most high-profile nationally significant infrastructure project (NSIP) applications to go through the Planning Act 2008 process, from the Hinkley Point and … Read more

The post below was first published on our Policy matters blog here. Amid soaring prices, political obstacles and pressure for enhanced security, the Government’s new energy playbook needs more than eye-catching targets to tackle the key issues. Read more

At the end of March, the UK Government published its long-awaited consultation on the further development of the UK ETS (the “Consultation“), indicating the future capacity and scope of the UK scheme. The UK ETS was launched on 1 January 2021 to replace Great Britain’s participation in the EU ETS after the end of the … Read more