Scoping paper called for on the impact of non-energy policies on energy systems

The UK Energy Research Centre would like to commission a scoping paper on the impact of non-energy policies on the energy system as part of its Flexible Research Fund.

The UK Energy Research Centre are seeking proposals from universities or other institutions eligible to hold Research Council awards.

The purpose of the scoping paper will be:

1. To synthesise existing research on the impact of non-energy policies on the energy system.

2. To develop a future research agenda that includes themes or questions that are relevant to UKERC’s whole systems research programme.

3. The results of this piece of work will feed into the priority setting process for the forthcoming third round of funding under the UKERC Research Fund.

The results will be published, and will also be made available to the Research Councils.

The main focus of the proposed work is on policy domains that are outside what is traditionally regarded as ‘energy policy’, i.e. outside the remit of the Department of Energy and Climate Change within the UK government and equivalent departments or teams within the devolved administrations.

The rationale is that policies which are developed and implemented outside the energy domain could have significant implications for the energy system. Examples include transport policies, which affect demand for fossil fuels and could increasingly impact the electricity system; land-use planning policies that could affect patterns of energy use in buildings and from transport; or foreign policies that could impact on patterns of energy trade.

At the second consultation workshop for the Research Fund, other policy domains were identified including taxation, education, housing, food and the effects of an increasingly ageing population.