We are delighted to announce that funding has been awarded to two New Entrants to the Energy Networks Community through our recent Flexible Funding call.
Congratulations to Xue Yong (University of Liverpool) and to Victor Gutierrez-Basulto (Cardiff University).
Project date:
Awarded
AI-Guided Infrastructure Planning: Graph Neural Network-Based Modelling of Commuter Patters for EV Charger Allocation in Railway Networks
South Wales faces a critical “charging divide” hindering EV adoption, particularly for those without off-street parking. Our project tackles this by integrating EV charging with railway station car parks, leveraging cutting-edge Graph Neural Networks.
This AI-driven approach will create a comprehensive framework and practical tool to strategically roll out EV charging infrastructure. We’ll forecast EV adoption and charging demand at railway stations, identify optimal locations and capacities for chargers, and simulate future scenarios using Welsh Government data.
By considering socio-demographic factors, commuter patterns, and grid constraints, we aim to ensure equitable access to charging, maximising coverage and supporting wider socio-economic benefits. This project will deliver data-informed recommendations for efficient and fair deployment, ultimately accelerating e-mobility in South Wales
Project date:
Awarded
Smart Electrolysers, Smarter Grids: AIPowered
Catalyst Design for Dual Grid and
Hydrogen Gain
The UK is rapidly shifting to renewable electricity, with wind and solar providing nearly half its power. But these variable sources don’t always match demand, causing wasted energy—like in winter 2022–23, when enough wind power to supply over a million homes was lost due to grid limits.
A promising solution is to use this excess electricity to produce hydrogen via electrolysis. This “green hydrogen” can be stored and used later, and electrolysers can help stabilise the grid. However, current electrolysers degrade under fluctuating power, respond slowly, and rely on costly materials. This also limits optimisation of grid costs, stability, and reliability.
Therefore, this project will focus on optimising the grid’s dynamic performance by developing AI-driven tools that link catalyst atomic properties to real-time grid conditions. These tools will be built by analysing data on catalysts, grid behaviour, and weather patterns to reduce energy waste, cut costs, and improve reliability. This approach will accelerate the UK’s transition to a fully renewable energy future, benefiting industry, researchers, and society
We are delighted to announce that funding has been awarded to two New Entrants to the Energy Networks Community through our recent Flexible Funding call.
Congratulations to Xue Yong (University of Liverpool) and to Victor Gutierrez-Basulto (Cardiff University).
World-leading energy networks experts will call for renewable power generation facilities to be connected to the UK grid more quickly at a conference in Bath this week.
The Supergen Energy Networks Hub Annual Conference will highlight the role power networks play in delivering key national targets in reaching net zero, delivering green growth, powering new data centres that will help the UK become an AI superpower, and tackling issues including energy security and fuel poverty.
World-leading energy networks experts will call for renewable power generation facilities to be connected to the UK grid more quickly at a conference in Bath this week.
The Supergen Energy Networks Hub Annual Conference will highlight the role power networks play in delivering key national targets in reaching net zero, delivering green growth, powering new data centres that will help the UK become an AI superpower, and tackling issues including energy security and fuel poverty.
Heat networks are widely recognised as vital to achieving net zero. In cities they will often be the cheapest form of low carbon heating over the long term because they are efficient and can exploit many different sources of waste and ambient heat. They could also reduce the amount of investment required for electricity grid upgrades and help to balance intermittent renewable generation.
This report aims to distil the major outstanding issues – including the cost of heat, conflicting emissions regulations, and the interaction of heat networks with the rest of the energy system – and suggest practical solutions.
Heat networks are widely recognised as vital to achieving net zero. In cities they will often be the cheapest form of low carbon heating over the long term because they are efficient and can exploit many different sources of waste and ambient heat. They could also reduce the amount of investment required for electricity grid upgrades and help to balance intermittent renewable generation.
This report aims to distil the major outstanding issues – including the cost of heat, conflicting emissions regulations, and the interaction of heat networks with the rest of the energy system – and suggest practical solutions.
From Equity to Action: Ensuring a Just Transition to Net Zero in the UK Energy Sector
World-leading energy networks experts will call for renewable power generation facilities to be connected to the UK grid more quickly at a conference in Bath this week.
The Supergen Energy Networks Hub Annual Conference will highlight the role power networks play in delivering key national targets in reaching net zero, delivering green growth, powering new data centres that will help the UK become an AI superpower, and tackling issues including energy security and fuel poverty.
Sheridan Few from University of Leeds discusses decision making in Energy Networks
Heat networks are widely recognised as vital to achieving net zero. In cities they will often be the cheapest form of low carbon heating over the long term because they are efficient and can exploit many different sources of waste and ambient heat. They could also reduce the amount of investment required for electricity grid upgrades and help to balance intermittent renewable generation.
This report aims to distil the major outstanding issues – including the cost of heat, conflicting emissions regulations, and the interaction of heat networks with the rest of the energy system – and suggest practical solutions.
World-leading energy networks experts will call for renewable power generation facilities to be connected to the UK grid more quickly at a conference in Bath this week.
The Supergen Energy Networks Hub Annual Conference will highlight the role power networks play in delivering key national targets in reaching net zero, delivering green growth, powering new data centres that will help the UK become an AI superpower, and tackling issues including energy security and fuel poverty.
In August we welcomed leading Academics and Industry experts from the UK and China, including the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), British Embassy, Chinese Embassy and the Chinese Society for Electrical Engineering, at the University of Bath.
This Forum provided a unique opportunity to bring together leading researchers, industrialists, policymakers, and high-tech innovators from the UK and China to share the latest development in decarbonisation and net zero. It provided an ideal platform to foster deeper and more meaningful collaborations to address critical policy, market, and technical challenges, and facilitate partnerships between the UK and China and between the industry and academia communities. Ultimately, the forum aims to pave the way for exploring innovative ways to achieve sustainable collaboration between the UK and China.
We look forward to future collaborations in future energy system development.