Episode 65: Global Offshore Wind Special with Tara Singh

And if you're a bill payer, it's not helped by tariffs shifting with a bit of a lag to when the energy markets move.

I don't think that really helps 'cause it's the usually high oil prices, our electricity bills are low, and then a few months later, oh, our prices have gone up.

I don't think it's necessarily that clear, and I'm wondering what more can we be doing to say the CFD is a hedge? It looks expensive until you end up with one of the crises that we've had, you know, three or four times in the last decade, and then it looks like really good value.

Do you think we're doing enough-

Yeah

... to get that message across?

Look, I think that is a core part of why I was brought in for this role because I think we are delivering so much, and part of my role is to make sure we communicate this in a way that makes sense to the public.

And we've just done some joint trade association polling, which has been really encouraging.

So two-thirds of the public recognize that a clean energy system is more secure, and only 4% believe we should go back to a fossil-based system.

So I think the understanding is better than we give the public credit for.

Where the issue is, obviously, cost of living.

So I think everyone's bills have gone up across a whole range of, of areas.

The economy has not grown, um, significantly for the past 10, 15 years, and cost of living is the number one issue people are voting on.

And I think we in the energy sector have to, number one, do everything we can to take costs out the system.

Mm-hmm.

So whether that's greater predictability for the supply chain because then they can invest ahead of time and that drives costs down, whether it's improving the planning system so it's faster and more predictable, whether it's working more closely with our European allies so that we can buy and sell services in a, in an efficient way.

All of that is incumbent on us to make sure we do that.

And of course, the work you guys are doing at Catapult in driving innovation in order to get costs down is just unbelievably important.

So I think we have to do that bit.

But on the comms side, I think we have to be alive to the cost of living debate.

And I think offshore wind is very good value compared to gas even before the crisis gas prices.

But that still doesn't mean the energy system is affordable for lots of people, and we're very pleased to work with Energy UK, who, who represent retailers, to look at what things government can do to help people who are really affected by high energy prices.

I think that's got to be a core part of what we talk about as well.

And it's great that you're bringing that broader context because, uh, the ORE Catapult, we're all about offshore renewables, offshore wind, wave, tidal.

But I think you've really nailed that point that it's no good having a system like that that benefits some and not everyone, so how do we then socialize more of those benefits?