On the 16th May, delegates at the Midlands Power Group evening lecture were invited to consider what "changing the counterfactual" means in the U.K. energy scene. Matthew Knight, Director of Energy Strategy and Government Affairs with Siemens, presented his view of this rather unusual topic. 

 

In a far ranging talk, Matthew looked at the factors that have influenced the power industry of today and gave us a perspective on how the consumers' behaviours are increasingly influencing the future shape of the sector. The rapid growth in domestic solar power and electric vehicles are both symptomatic of the rapidly changing environment in which the end user is the counterfactual to the long held assumption that government and big business determine the shape of the power sector. 

 

Delegates were also given an insight into the Future Power System Architecture work sponsored by government and involving a broad spectrum of professionals and organisations including the IET in assessing the challenges facing the electricity systems by 2030. (More at http://www.theiet.org/sectors/energy/resources/fpsa/index.cfm?origin=reportdocs )


The MPG would like to thank Matthew for a most informative and engaging talk. We would also like to thank him for sharing his insightful presentation which can be found here.