Electricity Market Reform: From Design to Delivery

How should Britain's electricity market evolve to deliver Clean Power 2030 and support the transition to net zero? This Strategic Summit panel examines the UK's most significant programme of electricity market reform since privatisation, bringing together senior representatives from the National Energy System Operator (NESO), Ofgem, ScottishPower and leading energy economists to discuss how policy is moving from market design towards practical delivery.

The discussion begins by outlining the scale of reform currently underway. Following the Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA), the introduction of Reformed National Pricing (RNP), major grid connection reforms and the creation of the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP), the sector is moving towards a more coordinated approach in which generation, networks, storage and demand are planned together rather than developing independently. Panellists explain how this represents a fundamental shift from incremental, market-led investment towards long-term strategic planning designed to provide greater certainty for investors and improve delivery across the electricity system.

A significant focus of the discussion is the role of strategic planning in supporting investment. Speakers describe how the SSEP will provide a long-term roadmap for generation, transmission and demand through to 2050, helping government, regulators and industry align infrastructure investment with future energy needs. Rather than viewing Clean Power 2030 as the final destination, the panel argues it should be seen as the starting point for a much broader transformation as electricity demand grows through electrification, heat, transport, hydrogen production and new industries such as AI and data centres.

The panel also explores the practical challenges of implementation. Connections reform is highlighted as an essential step towards reducing the UK's oversized grid connection queue and prioritising projects that are genuinely deliverable. Alongside this, discussion centres on the unprecedented scale of transmission investment required through the RIIO-T3 price control period, with panellists emphasising the importance of anticipatory network investment, supply chain readiness and planning reform to ensure infrastructure can be delivered quickly enough to support renewable generation. Repowering existing onshore wind farms and strengthening local distribution networks are also identified as important priorities for maintaining progress.

Another major theme is transmission charging and locational pricing. The panel discusses whether the current Transmission Network Use of System (TNUoS) charging regime continues to support investment, particularly for renewable projects in Scotland where high and volatile network charges have become a growing concern. While there is broad agreement that reform is necessary, speakers note that the future role of locational pricing depends on wider policy decisions about how strategic planning, connection offers and investment support mechanisms interact. Throughout the debate, the emphasis remains on providing greater certainty for investors while ensuring network costs are managed efficiently and the electricity system develops in the most effective way.

The session concludes by recognising that successful electricity market reform will depend not only on designing new policies but on delivering them consistently across government, regulators and industry. While many of the reforms remain under consultation, the discussion reflects broad consensus that strategic planning, coordinated investment and regulatory certainty will be essential to building a cleaner, more resilient and more affordable electricity system capable of supporting Britain's long-term energy transition.

The session explores

• The transition from market-led electricity development to strategic energy planning
• The Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP) and Reformed National Pricing (RNP)
• Grid connections reform and accelerating project delivery
• Transmission investment, RIIO-T3 and network infrastructure
• Reform of Transmission Network Use of System (TNUoS) charging
• Investment certainty, regulatory reform and delivering Clean Power 2030
• Long-term planning for net zero and the future electricity system

Watch the full panel discussion to hear experts from across government, regulation and industry discuss how electricity market reform is evolving from policy design to practical delivery, and what these changes mean for investors, developers and the future of the UK's energy system

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