The global energy sector is facing considerable pressure arising from climate change, depletion of fossil fuels and geopolitical issues around the location of remaining fossil fuel reserves. Energy networks are vitally important enablers for the UK energy sector and therefore UK industry and society. Energy networks exist primarily to exploit and facilitate temporal and spatial diversity in energy production and use and to exploit economies of scale where they exist. The pursuit of Net Zero presents many complex interconnected challenges which reach beyond the UK and have huge relevance internationally. These challenges vary considerably from region to region due to historical, geographic, political, economic and cultural reasons. As technology and society changes so do these challenges, and therefore the planning, design and operation of energy networks needs to be revisited and optimised. Electricity systems are facing technical issues of bi-directional power flows, increasing long-distance power flows and a growing contribution from fluctuating and low inertia generation sources. Gas systems require significant innovation to remain relevant in a low carbon future. Heat networks have little energy demand market share, although they have been successfully installed in other northern European countries. Other energy vectors such as Hydrogen or bio-methane show great promise but as yet have no significant share of the market. Faced with these pressures, the modernisation of energy networks technology, processes and governance is a necessity if they are to be fit for the future. Good progress has been made in de-carbonisation in some areas but this has not been fast enough, widespread enough across vectors or sectors and not enough of the innovation is being deployed at scale. Effort is required to accelerate the development, scale up the deployment and increase the impact delivered.

Energy systems are vitally important to the future of UK industry and society. However, the energy trilemma presents many complex interconnected challenges. Current integrated energy systems modelling and simulation techniques suffer from a series of shortcomings that undermine their ability to develop and inform improved policy and planning decisions, therefore preventing the UK realising huge potential benefits. The current approach is characterised by high level static models which produce answers or predictions that are highly subject to a set of critical simplifying assumptions and therefore cannot be relied upon with a high degree of confidence. They are unable to provide sufficiently accurate or detailed, integrated representations of the physics, engineering, social, spatial temporal or stochastic aspects of real energy systems. They also struggle to generate robust long term plans in the face of uncertainties in commercial and technological developments and the effects of climate change, behavioural dynamics and technological interdependencies. The aim of the Centre for Energy Systems Integration (CESI) is to address this weakness and reduce the risks associated with securing and delivering a fully integrated future energy system for the UK. This will be achieved through the development of a radically different, holistic modelling, simulation and optimisation methodology which makes use of existing high level tools from academic, industry and government networks and couples them with detailed models validated using full scale multi vector demonstration systems. CESI will carry out uncertainty quantification to identify the robust messages which the models are providing about the real world, and to identify where effort on improving models should be focused in order to maximise learning about the real world. This approach, and the associated models and data, will be made available to the energy community and will provide a rigorous underpinning for current integrated energy systems research, so that future energy system planning and policy formulation can be carried out with a greater degree of confidence than is currently possible. CESI is a unique partnership of five research intensive universities and underpinning strategic partner Siemens (contribution value of £7.1m to the centre) The Universities of Newcastle, Durham, Edinburgh, Heriot-Watt and Sussex have a combined RCUK energy portfolio worth over £100m. The centre will have a physical base as Newcastle University which will release space for the centre in the new £60m Urban Sciences Building. This building will contain world-class facilities from which to lead international research into digitally enabled urban sustainability and will also be physically connected to a full scale instrumented multi vector energy system. The building will feature an Urban Observatory, which will collect a diverse set of data from across the city, and a 3D Decision Theatre which will enable real-time data to be analysed, explored and the enable the testing of hypotheses. The main aim of CESI's work is to develop a modular 'plug-n-play' environment in which components of the energy system can be co-simulated and optimised in detail. With no technology considered in isolation, considering sectors as an interlinked whole, the interactions and rebound effects across technologies and users can be examined. The methodology proposed is a system architect concept underpinned by a twin track approach of detailed multi-vector, integrated simulation and optimisation at various scales incorporating uncertainty, coupled with large scale demonstration and experimental facilities in order to test, validate and evaluate solutions and scenarios. A System Architect takes a fully integrated, balanced, long term, transparent approach to energy system planning unfettered by silos and short term thinking.

Energy networks are vitally important enablers for the UK energy sector and therefore UK industry and society. The energy trilemma (energy security, environmental impact and social cost) presents many complex interconnected challenges which reach beyond the UK and have huge relevance internationally. These challenges vary considerably from region to region, and change as a result of technology and society changes. Therefore, the planning, design and operation of energy networks needs to be revisited and optimised. Current energy networks research does not fully embrace a whole systems approach and is therefore not developing a deep enough understanding of the interconnected and interdependent nature of energy network infrastructure. The Supergen Energy Networks Hub will provide leadership, a core research programme and mechanisms/funding for the energy networks community to grow and come together to develop this deeper understanding and explore opportunities to shape energy networks which are fit for the future. The research component of the Hub's activities comprises an interconnected and complementary series of work packages. The work packages are: WP1: Understanding, Shaping and Challenging; WP2: Energy Network Infrastructure; WP3: ICT and Data; WP4: Policy and Society; WP5: Markets and Regulation; WP6: Risk and Uncertainty. WP1 incorporates a co-evolutionary approach and brings the other work packages together in a structured way. WP2 is the backbone of the research, dealing with the physical infrastructure in a multi vector manner from the outset. WP3 to WP6 deal with aspects of energy networks that cut across, and are equally valid, for all vectors and have the ability to integrate and modernise network infrastructures. All work packages will consider both planning and design as well as operational aspects. Experimental work and demonstrators will be essential to progress in energy networks research and the Hub will bring these facilities to bear through WP1. The Hub will engage with the energy networks communities throughout the research programme, to ensure that the work is informed by best practice and that the findings are widely visible and understood. The main objectives of the communication and engagement activities will be to ensure the energy networks academic community are connected and coherent, and that their work has a high profile and deep level of understanding in the relevant Industrial, Governmental and Societal communities both nationally and internationally. This will maximise the chances of high impact outcomes in the energy networks space as well as promoting energy networks as an exciting and dynamic area to carry out research, thus attracting the brightest minds to get involved. Communication and engagement activities will be a constant feature of the Hub and will be particularly energetic during the first twelve months in order to rapidly establish a brand, and an open and supportive culture within the relevant communities. Engagement activities will as far as possible be carried out in conjunction with other key organisations in the energy space, to maximise the value of the engagement activities. The Hub aims to become a beacon for equality, diversity and inclusion. Our mission is to enhance equality of opportunity and create a positive, flourishing, safe and inclusive environment for everyone associated with the Hub, from staff, students, Advisory Board members and general Hub representation (at conferences, workshops and reviews). We recognise the need and the challenges to support early career researchers, and improve the balance of protected characteristics across the entire Hub community, such as race or ethnicity, gender reassignment, disability, sex, sexual orientation, age, religion or belief, pregnancy or maternity status, marital status or socio-economic background.

The ESPRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Renewable Energy Northeast Universities Plus (ReNU+) is a transformative programme that will train a new generation of Doctoral Carbon Champions (DCCs) who are characterised by scientific and engineering excellence and capable of interdisciplinary systemic thinking to accelerate Net Zero. The outcome from ReNU+ will be that DCCs will meet critical needs in high-skill employment across industry, policy, education and government and convert key challenges in resilience and equity into economic opportunities for the United Kingdom. This will be achieved through a professionally accredited training programme in a thriving environment of research excellence led by Northumbria, Newcastle and Durham universities. The 2023-2035 energy landscape sets a compelling context for ReNU+ and in particular, the need for future leaders in this space in the United Kingdom. Locally generated renewable energy will provide the UK with increased energy security and critically important additions in electricity capacity to meet domestic and industrial demands. This is only one piece of the landscape however, which also includes sustainability (e.g. critical materials supply), resilience (e.g. climate change mitigation) and an equitable transition to Net Zero, which offers both economic and health benefits. The absorptive capacity for ReNU+ DCCs is partly evidenced by the forecast of 694,000 new UK jobs in the low carbon and renewable energy economy by 2030 (source: UK Local Government Association). The ReNU+ training programme has a core focus on developing key skills that facilitate understanding of and engagement with the wider Net Zero system including investment, regulation and end-user engagement. It will become a reference for high-skill training in Net Zero that redefines the role of scientists and engineers as critical catalysts for decarbonisation who deliver impact well beyond technology. ReNU+ identifies a critical link between equality, diversity and inclusivity and decarbonisation and includes key innovations to leverage this link. Consequently, DCCs will also develop societal and citizenship values as they become living examples of the future workforces to enable an equitable and sustainable transition to Net Zero. This approach has been validated by our partners who have co-designed and will co-deliver the ReNU+ training programme. This support includes national and local Government, multinational companies, small-to-medium enterprises and charity organisations.

The vision for the EDI+ network is to acknowledge and address key challenges and equip a cohort of researchers and their organisations to make lasting changes towards a diverse, equitable, inclusive and accessible research community. This will have impact beyond the academy and set a precedent, offering the means to tailor EDI action among the diverse organisations participating in energy research. It garners the best of scientific and social science evidence and critical approaches from the humanities to put EDI challenges in appropriate perspectives and make them available for action. It is action-oriented and based on an effective Theory of Change Model that considers: -> the desired outcomes (aims) for the network (An energy research community that is equal, inclusive and diverse) -> the evidence-informed assumptions for achieving the outcomes (such as findings from the Inclusion Matters programme) -> the activities that, based on the assumptions, should be implemented to achieve the aims (prioritising time, training and support for action) Evidence suggests that key barriers to effective change in EDI can be condensed to be: - Lack of Time to develop deep, evidence-based understanding of local issues - Lack of Access to the power structures required to enact change - Lack of resource and evidence-based solutions to issues that are found - Isolation from peers with experience of EDI driven change In response, we propose a fellowship programme, which recruits EDI champions from diverse energy research institutions; trains them in EDI issues; research methods for analysing organisational contexts, how to make organisational changes, and how to implement and evaluate plans of action; and supports them to publish their results. All fellows will have the support of a named senior executive of their organisation, all of whom will engage in cross-institutional reciprocal mentoring to embed learning and change in the institutional context. We name these 'fellowships' (despite the possible connotations of the term 'fellow') so that they will have prestige on the participants' cv's, emphasise the research-basis of the actions, and lend weight to their change-making activities under the network. The 'fellows' will form a mutually supportive network that should endure beyond the life of the funding scheme. EPSRC funded fellows will be complemented by industry- and government- funded fellows to expand the network beyond the funded call, and with the establishment of an alumni network, will offer the potential for the network to endure beyond the funding period. Selected training events will be open to the wider energy research community, who will also have access to a toolkit on EDI actions in context and all other network publications. Additional impact activities will include workshops and presentations to coincide with existing conference and research events, to maximise the reach of the network. Findings will be shared and promoted through a 'network of networks' approach across the energy research community nationally, and internationally.