In July we held the final of our Phase 3 Advisory Groups tasked with shaping the Open Energy programme of work in the following areas: 1) Membership and 2) Delivery. The purpose of the July meetings was to wrap up the Advisory Group process and report back on what we have achieved during this six month phase of the project.

The three groups have been convening monthly since March and include a wide range of industry leaders and subject matter experts, representing a cross section of private and public players with a unique contribution. The Advisory Groups have played a critical role in Open Energy’s development, providing us with a 360 perspective that ensures that Open Energy is designed effectively for the benefit of the energy sector. 

Here’s a summary of everything achieved and discussed in the July meetings.

Membership

Details of what was concluded in July appear below, but it is important to call out the fantastic engagement we have had from all participants in the Membership AG and the great feedback we have received – thank you to all!

Concluded this month:

• Report back on Data Licensing consultation and final policy made available
• Finalised sections 1-4 of the Operational Guidelines and received an update on the future development of the Operational Guidelines
• Received a demo of the technical build
• Further update of the business case and benefits of Open Energy, financially, from a regulatory compliance perspective and in terms of potential commercial opportunities
• Presented an overview of the ‘Go to Live’ plan
• Noted the importance of the support function in helping Data Providers and Data Consumers come on-board and use Open Energy Access Control (recognising that participants are all at different stages of development.)

March-July achievements:

• Agreed our Terms of Reference, conditions for participation, roles, responsibilities and liabilities for the Membership Advisory Group and its future roadmap
• Agreed standard definitions, acronyms and terminology to be used in Open Energy (to be incorporated in Operational Guidelines)
• Agreed high-level membership charging principles (Not for Profit, proportionate, inclusive) to form basis of detailed membership model work
• Provided input into and agreed Data Sensitivity Classes, from closed, through shared, to open
• Provided input into and agreed Data Access conditions
• Reviewed proposed approach to Licensing and provided input into consultation
• Detailed input into the membership and charging model, distillation of the business case and value of membership, including the importance of de-risking the commercial proposition, setting up the proposition for stakeholders to sell internally
• Provided input on sections 1-4 of the Operational Guidelines
• Provided input to the definition of active membership
• Shared architecture overview with AG

Delivery

As with the Membership Advisory Group, we’d like to thank all our participants for the great engagement, energy and input that we’ve had. 

Concluded this month:

• Concluded work on Data Access Conditions for Data Consumers and the Guidelines for Data Providers.
• Reviewed the Beta testing results and the lessons learned from the process
• Licensing and Access Control conditions which included Authorisation Flows, Licensing Model and Access Rule

March-July achievements:

• Standard definitions, acronyms and terminology to be used in Open Energy (Section 2 of Operational Guidelines)
• Consultation on data sensitivity classes
• Users and key players within the Open Energy ecosystem – Data Providers / Service providers / Dual roles
• Data sensitivity classes 

• Review of the operational guidelines
• Concluded work on Data Access Conditions for Data Consumers and the Guidelines for Data Providers.

• Reviewed the Beta testing results and the lessons learned from the process
• Reviewed Licensing and Access Control conditions which included Authorisation Flows, Licensing Model and Access Rules.
• Beta test lessons learnt and reviewed. Live demo of Access Control.
• Request for additional Use Cases to add to development timeline

Steering Group

Concluded this month:

Agreed

• The final points of the Open Energy proposition, including how it supports Data Best Practice Principles and The Digitalisation Strategy and Action Plan
• Beyond Phase 3 go-to-live plan and future activities 
• The approach for identification and evaluation of the next set of use cases  

Progressed

• The long term sustainable funding approach, including the next steps in development of the business model  
• The Open Energy Beta
• Research and Open Energy documentation 
• Next steps beyond MEDA phase 3

Reviewed

• MEDA phase 3 delivery,  including the overall achievements for the Membership and Delivery AGs
• EDVP delivery and inclusion within Open Energy

March-July achievements:

• Providing oversight throughout the development of the Open Energy Search and Access Control beta. This has provided the focal point for reporting, challenge function and sign-off for the recommendations made by the Advisory Groups. 
• Shaping the approach to funding and how Open Energy will be paid for, including the interim Membership fee approach
• Guiding development of the Open Energy proposition and ensuring clarity in the way it’s positioned and communicated
• Reviewing and signing off on our Operational Guidelines, Data Access, Data Sensitivity and Licensing policies
• Ensuring a good fit with objectives and implementation of EDVP 

Our sincere thanks go to the members of the Steering Group, who have overseen all of our work.

Archive video:

Who:

• Kathryn Corrick, Strategy & Development Director, Icebreaker One (chair)
• Gavin Starks, CEO & Founder, Icebreaker One 
• More speakers TBC

What:

Join us to celebrate innovative visualisations in UK energy data!

Visualisations are a great way for people to understand, feel inspired and engage with energy data, in turn helping accelerate the transition to Net Zero.

At this Showcase you will be introduced to exciting energy data visualisations in the UK right now. You will hear from our panel of expert judges and the winners of the Showcase will be announced!

The Showcase is part of the Energy Data Visibility Project led by a partnership between Icebreaker One, Arup, and Hippo Digital, and commissioned by the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. Developing an innovative service that will connect the UK’s current patchwork of energy data sources to improve their visibility and accuracy.

Programme: The Energy Data Visibility Project (EDVP) forms part of the Modernising Energy Data (MED) programme being commissioned by BEIS, Ofgem and Innovate UK.

This project update is informal and not yet formally endorsed by BEIS. Formal notices will be marked as such.

Where: Archive below

Links and extracts from the online chat

Documents:

• ‘Digitalising our energy system for net zero: strategy and action plan’; Energy Digitalisation Strategy, developed by the government, Ofgem and Innovate UK in coordination with the energy sector.
• Icebreaker One’s map of the UK energy data ecosystem.
• Information about the Ofgem/UKRI Innovate UK Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF); a funding mechanism for the Electricity System Operator, Electricity Transmission, Gas Transmission and Gas Distribution sectors.
• Details of the Energy Networks Association (ENA) Network Innovation Competition (NIC) and Call for Ideas 2021; an annual opportunity for Electricity Network companies to compete for funding for the development and demonstration of new technologies and new operating and commercial arrangements (open until 27th October). You can register for the ENA NIC Information Webinar taking place on 1st October.
• Connect don’t collect; additional context behind the Icebreaker One mission to enable organisations to find and connect data around user-needs, in order to build an energy data ecosystem that works for everyone.
• Ofgem’s Data Best Practice Guidance.
• A full summary of the Open Energy MEDA Phase 3 work that was done this year, and the launch of the Pilot phase. We invite applications to join the Pilot and collaborate with Open Energy as part of the Advisory, Steering and community engagement groups.
• Link to register (free) for the Energy Networks Innovation Conference, where the National Energy System Map launch will take place on the 15th October.

Questions:

• Q: Our digital transformation may well rely on granular and  timely-delivered consumption data. Without mandatory provision of HH data from domestic smart meters, can we really transform to meet our ideals? Is a policy change required to make this data available to all that need it to help to profile, forecast, settle and plan?
  • A: From Danae : Great question. We work closely with the Smart Meters team to understand what data can be opened and shared and to whom so that as many actors as possible can access smart meter data while protecting privacy.

• Q: Useful energy data ecosystem diagram earlier, labelled as UK but set up in Northern Ireland is different considering the Single Electricity Market (SEM). For panel members, is focus orientated towards GB rather than UK wholly? How can NI be part of this movement and not miss out?
  • A: From Gavin Starks : Thank you – that diagram is, as you say, GB … let’s make sure we have NI properly represented … gavin@icebreakerone.org
  • A: From Sara Vaughan : I think that regulators can be a huge catalyst for change here – viz. the role of Ofgem in GB.  Better data enables better decisions.  Where is the NI regulator on this? Plays to Danae’s current point
  • A: From Danae : https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/sites/default/files/docs/2021/05/data_best_practice_guidance_v0.3_0.pdf

• Q: Is the issue about data sharing partially because sharing is usually seen as all or nothing: you share or you don’t? Could this be addressed by having consistent consent processes where a data owner can say “I’ll share my energy data down to daily granularity with those parties for this particular use”?
  • A: From Gavin Starks : absolutely – Consent management is central to the Open Energy trust framework

Who:

• Gavin Starks, CEO & Founder, Icebreaker One [Chair]
• Dan Clarke, Head of Innovation, Energy Networks Association
• Sara Vaughan, Non-executive Director, Elexon; Membership Advisory Group co-chair, Icebreaker One
• Tolu Oladimeji, Data Governance and Strategy Lead, SSE plc
• Simon Evans, Digital Energy Leader, Arup
• Andy Allen, Data Scientist, CityScience
• Danae Marshall, Head of Energy Data, BEIS

What:

This event will demystify the role of data in achieving Net Zero in the UK’s energy system. It will be a practical look at the obstacles standing in the way of Net Zero, and the changes needed to improve access to data for businesses and the public sector. 

We’ll hear from real users of the Open Energy service currently in development, which aims to revolutionise the way energy data is shared in the UK to help deliver the UK’s commitments to the Paris Agreement.

Where: Archive

Who:

• Gavin Starks, CEO & Founder, Icebreaker One  
• Ed Dowding, UX / Web Developer, Open Energy, Icebreaker One  
• Cybele Wong, Senior Scientist, Arup 
• Zoe Slater, UX Design Consultant, Hippo Digital  
• More speakers TBC

What:

Making it easier to discover, access and share energy data will help accelerate the transition to Net Zero. 

The Energy Data Visibility Project is led by a partnership between Icebreaker One, Arup, and Hippo, and commissioned by the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). It will develop an innovative service that will connect the UK’s current patchwork of energy data sources to improve their visibility and accuracy. 

The service will aim to accelerate the UK’s journey to Net Zero by making energy data more accessible and remove barriers to sharing it securely, boosting the UK’s energy transition. 

This half-hour event will explain the project in greater detail and lay out what it means for energy data access. The project team will answer questions from the audience and share information on how to participate in the project. 

The Energy Data Visibility Project (EDVP) forms part of the Modernising Energy Data (MED) programmes being commissioned by BEIS, Ofgem and Innovate UK, which are leading the change towards a digital energy sector. Icebreaker One works on this in partnership with Arup and digital consultancy Hippo Digital. 

This project update is informal and not yet formally endorsed by BEIS. Formal notices will be marked as such.

Where: Archive webinar

Who:

• Gavin Starks, CEO & Founder, Icebreaker One [Chair]
• Dan Clarke, Head of Innovation, Energy Networks Association (ENA)
• Simon Evans, Digital Energy Leader, Arup 
• Helen Crooks, Chief Data Officer, Ofgem 
• Sara Vaughan FEI, Non-Executive Director, Elexon & Open Energy Membership Advisory Group co-chair, Icebreaker One
• Andrew Allen, Data Scientist & Energy Research Lead, City Science

What:

This event will demystify the role of data in achieving Net Zero in the UK’s energy system. It will be a practical look at the obstacles standing in the way of Net Zero, and the changes needed to improve access to data for businesses and the public sector. 

We’ll hear from real users of the Open Energy service currently in development, which aims to revolutionise the way energy data is shared in the UK to help deliver the UK’s commitments to the Paris Agreement.

This event is organised as part of London Climate Action Week 2021.

We urgently need to take action to mitigate climate change. While there is clearly a need for bold leadership, no single organisation or sector can act entirely in isolation. Energy is a complex, interconnected system – bringing with it risks of unintended consequences and of significant inertia. Closed datasets impede the coordination and collaboration we desperately need, prolonging the status quo and locking out new entrants and insights.

At the Centre for Net Zero, our mission is to realise faster, fairer and more affordable paths to net zero. At the heart of our work is a not-for-profit Open Research Lab. We lead groundbreaking global research on the biggest questions in the energy transition, and make our data, models and reports freely available for everyone to understand, challenge and build on.

One of the questions we’re exploring is how the structure of our energy markets can support the transition to net zero. In order to make sensible changes to the way that our energy markets work, we need to think about the whole system – identifying impacts and feedback loops that might not be intuitive. Data is one of the essential ingredients to this, but no one party has all the data they need to think about the system as a whole. Relatedly, a key part of our mission is supporting the fairness of the energy transition. Access to wider datasets helps protect against implicit biases within the data we work with, and safeguard against unintended impacts on particular parts of society.

The Open Energy programme offers exciting new possibilities for thinking about the energy system in a more joined up way. At the moment it’s hard to imagine the impact of new policies or market structures because it’s hard to track how people, markets and physical systems all interact. But underpinned by shared data, it’s possible to stitch together real-world measurements and models of the various parts of the energy system to create what’s called a Digital Twin. 

With that, we can start to ask insightful questions about what we might do to change the rules of the system. For example, what if we were to dramatically cut the cost of adopting heat pumps, or make unit energy costs reflect the dynamic utilisation of the local network, or introduce a new way to reward electric vehicles for the flexibility they offer. Answering any one of these questions requires data from across the energy system (and beyond) – from the physical networks and assets through to the way we expect individuals and businesses to behave. Making it easier to share, discover and link data are the first steps along that path.

“[Our] new modelling strategy will increase transparency and collaboration. This will improve our insights and increase confidence in policy.” UK Government’s Energy White Paper, December 2020

The benefits to our net-zero transition could be enormous. There is great potential to underpin broader and more productive research collaborations. I see a growing number of passionate and intelligent people coming to this mission, and an urgent need to find effective ways for them to contribute and collaborate. I also believe there is a real opportunity for the UK to establish a leadership position around energy data, which can facilitate change on a global scale.

For the Centre for Net Zero this means the opportunity for greater impact – through richer analysis for policy makers, business leaders and investors, which in turn allows them to make bolder decisions about their role in the transition.

About the Centre for Net Zero

Backed by Octopus Energy, the Centre for Net Zero is an Open Research Lab focused on the energy transition and working closely with governments, cities, investors and businesses around the world to get us to net zero quickly, fairly and affordably. Find out more at CentreForNetZero.org.

About Icebreaker One

Icebreaker One is a UK-based non-profit making data work harder to deliver net-zero, working across agriculture, energy, transport, water and the built world. Its Open Energy project aims to revolutionise the way energy data is shared in the UK and create an energy data ecosystem that works for everyone. More information at IcebreakerOne.org

We heard firsthand from Rosie McGlynn at PassivSystems – our first beta user of the service – about her own experience of using the product. You can watch a recording of the webinar here:

Want to hear more? Register to find out how to become an Open Energy member.

When: 19 April 2021 – 2pm-2.30pm BST

Where: Online, sign up via Eventbrite

Who:

• Gea Mikic, Programme Manager, Icebreaker One (Chair)
• Emily Judson, Research Associate – Open Energy, Icebreaker One
• Frank Wales, Product Innovation Lead, Icebreaker One 
• Rosie McGlynn, Senior Programme Manager, PassivSystems, the first Beta user of Open Energy

What:

Open Energy is a new live service that will enable energy stakeholders to seamlessly search for, share and access shared data in an easy, secure way. 

The aim is to change the way energy data is shared with a solution developed by the sector for the sector. 

This half-hour event will showcase what to expect from Open Energy, set out its potential value for users, and share an early preview of the platform. The team will answer questions from the audience, and share information on how to join this ambitious project and register your interest as a potential Beta user. 

Open Energy won UK Government backing and funding from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).