Building on momentum: driving down energy costs through electrification and regulatory reform
We’ve seen a lot of momentum over the past year on Britain’s journey to a cleaner, more secure energy future – and as CEO of EDF UK, I’m hugely proud of the role we’ve continued to play as a net investor in Britain.
Nevertheless, stubbornly high energy bills remain a huge challenge – hurting Britain’s competitiveness, adding to the £4.4 billion customer debt pile, and risking the energy transition as a whole.
As the year draws to a close, I want to reflect on where we’ve got to so far and how best to address the challenges that lie ahead.
Balancing progress at pace and delivering best value on clean energy infrastructure
Over the past year, the UK has continued to make progress with its buildout of clean energy infrastructure.
Nowhere has that been clearer than in nuclear, with the Energy Secretary earlier this month heralding a “new Golden Age of nuclear power”.
From a Financial Investment Decision and Financial Close on Sizewell C, to the selection of a preferred bidder and site for the UK’s first small modular reactors, 2025 has undoubtedly been a milestone year.
I’ve watched Hinkley Point C continue to make strong progress. As the UK’s first new nuclear power station in a generation, it has laid the groundwork for the renaissance we’re seeing today. With a remarkable 14,000 people working day and night, the project has achieved several milestones this year, including lifting the 245-tonne domed roof onto the second reactor building.
A supply chain of over 4,000 British businesses and retrained nuclear workforce now stand ready to support Sizewell C and the development of advanced and small modular reactors – and at EDF we’ve made great strides this year looking at how we can use our sites to support SMR and AMR technologies.
Meanwhile our existing nuclear fleet has continued to serve Britain with clean, secure, always on electricity. Next year, the UK’s Advanced Gas‑cooled Reactors will mark 50 years of generation, having contributed more than £123 billion to the UK economy.
It’s also been a year of important milestones for the UK’s renewable energy sector – with welcome steps such as reducing the 700GW connections queue, and a funding boost for onshore wind and solar in AR7.
Our colleagues at EDF power solutions have continued to make good progress on their target of 10GW of renewable capacity by 2035, with 50 sites and 2GW already operational. Among this year’s major achievements was Neart na Gaoithe offshore wind farm becoming fully operational, generating enough clean electricity to power around 375,000 homes.
Delivering more clean, homegrown energy sources is good news for Britain, and will eventually help to stabilise bills. But in the short-term bills are expected to rise further to fund these new sources, so we need to do everything we can to help mitigate this.
We’ll need to focus on building what is necessary, at least cost and with the fewest delays. This means tackling the challenges of building large infrastructure.
While focused on the nuclear sector, the recent Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce report is a timely blueprint for streamlining planning and regulation and moving to a model of lower cost and more proportionate regulation.
Rising costs and mounting debt – addressing the energy bills challenge
I was also pleased to see the plans announced in the Autumn Budget to reduce energy bills by £150 on average, although the decision to scrap the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme presents a risk to delivering long-term savings. EDF has delivered over 130,000 ECO4 installations and customers saw permanent bill reductions, saving £30 million annually for 42,000 customers.
This year EDF also stepped up with a £30 million Winter Support Package, in line with our long-standing commitment to supporting vulnerable customers. Nevertheless, longer-term reforms will be fundamental to meaningfully lowering bills.
One such example is delivering the proposed Debt Relief Scheme, which would be a vital first step in tackling the debt legacy of the energy crisis, and helping to ease the pressure bad debt places on bills.
Accelerating electrification: a critical step in building an affordable, resilient power system
I strongly believe that one of the most impactful ways to reduce bills in the long term is by accelerating electrification. This will spread the cost of investment in our electricity infrastructure across a wider usage base, making for a more affordable system for all.
Electrification will also enable a more flexible energy system and help customers take control of their energy usage, while saving cash and carbon.
Our Sunday Saver scheme has already delivered 6.9 million free hours and £3 million in electricity bills savings for our customers.
With electricity being only 18% of final energy use today, there is still some way to go. But the prize up for grabs is clear – accelerating electrification across Britain could cut bills, modernise our homes and businesses, and deliver secure, homegrown energy.
This will require a whole industry and Government effort – and I look forward to EDF playing our part to help build a more secure, more affordable Electric Britain.
