Hello againAs we nestle into the Parliamentary recess and summer holiday season (I hope you are managing to squeeze in a well-earned break of some sort!), I’m sure I’m not the only one finding themselves thinking, ‘where has the first half of the year gone!?’Well, time flies while you’re having fun (and being busy getting stuff done). It’s been a very full 2022 to date, not always easy, but lots of progress and activity to be proud of.In April, the team were proud to share our Advocacy Strategy, articulating our five-year strategic objectives and our priorities for the year to come. The Strategy further sets out our stall and clearly articulates what we’re for; it is bold and ambitious, but also within reach (just!). This is exactly what we want to be as an organisation.We’ve continued to welcome new members into the Association, allowing us to keep broadening our understanding, perspective and clout, and have been as pumped as you have been to be able to meet in person on multiple occasions – our Awards Dinner at the Hurlingham Club and the 2022 President’s Reception in the Houses of Parliament especially were great fun, and it feels so good to be so connected with you all!Additionally, we were able to make decent headway on our ambition to increase our political engagement, securing ministerial meetings with the Secretary of State and other influential politicians such as Bim Afolami MP and Ben Lake MP.We’ve got a cracking second half of the year planned – including sector conferences for heat and for business energy, events at the Party Conferences, our very own Heat&DE Conference… and of course, engagement with new Ministers.But it also promises to be a very difficult time for our sector, for those we serve and for all who work within it. The coming winter poses significant challenges for us all and it is natural to feel a sense of trepidation. We will continue to try and support you in whatever ways we can – please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the team at any time.Despite everything, the potential for positive change remains and it’s important to reflect that we have already come a long way. The Energy Bill – announced on the day of the President’s Reception – touches all areas of our work. It crucially introduces heat network regulation (finally) and includes important zoning measures which will give us a significant policy lever to keep growing the market. The Bill also includes regulation for a future system operator which, in tandem with the Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA) has the potential to really shift the dial on flexibility in particular. The absence of clear plans surrounding energy efficiency and transitioning users at all scales, from dispersed industrial sites to householders, continues to be vexing and this is something we will be banging the drum about in the months to come.It is a time of political uncertainty; of risks and opportunities - we will continue to push and ensure the momentum we’ve worked so hard to establish continues to build. As I mentioned at the President’s Reception, despite all that has happened before, we cannot afford to be jaded and must approach each opportunity with the enthusiasm and (blind!?) belief that this could make the difference. Because one day, it will.I hope to see plenty of you over the next while - in the meantime, it’s been a delight to have so many interesting and awesome conversations with members and I look forward to keeping on hearing about all the great stuff you’re doing!Wishing you a lovely summer.Kindly,Lily FrenchamCEO
