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Energy Policy Group

Energy Policy

The Energy Policy Group at the University of Exeter provides an academic hub for the interdisciplinary study of energy policy. We place sustainability and change at the heart of debates about energy policy and governance. We work collaboratively with stakeholders and researchers on the economics and politics of energy to find new and innovative approaches for enabling the transition to a low carbon, sustainable and affordable energy system. Find out more about our team, vision and work here. We are part of ExeterEnergy.

Our latest thinking

Read our most recent papers, reports and presentations below. 

View all: Books | Working Papers | Other papers and reports | Presentations

R. McKenna, I. Mulalic, I. Soutar, J.M. Weinand, J. Price, S. Petrovi, K. Mainzer 

Exploring trade-offs between landscape impact, land use and resource quality for onshore variable renewable energy: an application to Great Britain
March 2022 | Energy 

Mehri Khosravi and Richard Lowes 

Cooling, a blind spot in UK energy policy
March 2022 | EPG Blog

James Dyson and Calum Harvey-Scholes

How Have Climate Emergency Declarations Helped Local Government Action to Decarbonise?
2022 | Book chapter 

Oscar Fitch-Roy and Lena Kitzing 

Price or beauty: Evolving models of offshore wind site allocation 
November 2021 | Presentation at WindEurope Electric City side event | Copenhagen 

Calum Harvey-Scholes

The Heat Transition must be local, energy-efficient, and rapid – the UK’s new Heat and Buildings Strategy is light on all three
November 2021 | EPG Blog 

Emily Judson

UK energy data governance: considerations, challenges, responsesUK energy data governance: considerations, challenges, responsesUK energy data governance: considerations, challenges, responsesUK energy data governance: considerations, challenges, responsesUK energy data governance: considerations, challenges, responsesUK energy data governance: considerations, challenges, responsesUK energy data governance: considerations, challenges, responsesUK energy data governance: considerations, challenges, responses
November 2021 | Energy Systems Digitalisation and Cyber Security Workshop, Newcastle University Centre for Energy 

James Suckling, Claire Hoolohan, Iain Soutar and Angela Druckman

Unintended consequences: Unknowable and Unavoidable, or Knowable and Unforgivable?
October 2021 | Frontier in Climate

Iain Soutar

Dancing with complexity: Making sense of decarbonization, decentralisation, digitalisation and democratisation
August 2021 | Energy Research & Social Science

Emily Judson, Iain Soutar and Oscar Fitch-Roy

Energy Democracy: A Digital Future?
May 2021 | STS Conference Graz

Bregje van Veelen, Ludovico Rella, Gerald Taylor Aiken, Emily Judson, Evelina Gambino, Alke Jenss, Ankur Parashar, Annabel Pinker

Intervention: Democratising Infrastructure
May 2021 | Political Geography

Thomas Pownall

A conceptualised electricity market design fit for GB's net zero future (PDF)
April 2021 | BEIS Brown Bag 

Jess Britton

Decarbonising heat in cities – the potential and challenges of heat networks
March 2021 | Global Sustainability Institute seminar, Anglia Ruskin University

Jess Britton

Transforming energy systems
March 2021 | COP26 event: Transformation. The Institution of Environmental Sciences 

Jess Britton

Rescaling energy - do places matter for net zero energy systems? (PDF)
February 2021 | SPRU Climate and Energy Seminar

Richard Lowes and Catherine Mitchell

Energy governance for the Northern Ireland energy transition (PDF)Energy governance for the Northern Ireland energy transition (PDF)Energy governance for the Northern Ireland energy transition (PDF)Energy governance for the Northern Ireland energy transition (PDF)Energy governance for the Northern Ireland energy transition (PDF)Energy governance for the Northern Ireland energy transition (PDF)Energy governance for the Northern Ireland energy transition (PDF)Energy governance for the Northern Ireland energy transition (PDF)
March 2021 | Report for Northern Ireland Executive

Thomas Pownall, Iain Soutar and Catherine Mitchell

Re-Designing GB's Electricity Market Design: A Conceptual Framework which Recognises the Value of Distributed Energy Resources
February 2021 | Energies 

Richard Lowes and Oscar Fitch-Roy

The answer to our heating problem is blowing in the wind
January 2021 | EPG Blog

Jess Britton, Angela Mae Minas, Ana Catarina Marques and Zoya Pourmirza

Exploring the potential of heat as a service in decarbonisation: Evidence needs and research gaps
January 2021 | Energy Sources, Part B: Economics, Planning and Policy 

Ian Bailey, Oscar Fitch-Roy, Tor Håkon Jackson Inderberg and David Benson

Idealism, pragmatism, and the power of compromise in the negotiation of New Zealand's Zero Carbon Act
January 2021 | Climate Policy 

Jess Britton

Smart meter data and equitable energy transitions – can cities play a role?
January 2021 | Book Chapter 

Rachel Bray, Bridget Woodman and Emily Judson

Future Prospects for Local Energy Markets: Lessons from the Cornwall LEM (PDF)
December 2020 | Report for Centrica PLC 

Laura Sandys and Thomas Pownall

ReCosting Energy: Powering for the future (PDF)
December 2020 | ReCosting Boxset 1 

Oscar Fitch-Roy, David Benson and David Monciardini

All around the world: assessing optimality in comparative circular economy policy packages
December 2020 | Journal of Cleaner Production 

Oscar Fitch-Roy

Building an industry: Exploring offshore wind institutional entrepreneurship (Slides)
December 2020 | SPRU Climate and Energy Seminar 

Richard Lowes, Jan Rosenow, Meysam Qadrdan and Jianzhong Wu

Hot Stuff: Research and policy principles for heat decarbonisation through smart electrification
December 2020 | Energy Research and Social Science 

Bridget Woodman and Oscar Fitch-Roy

The Future of renewable energy auctions: Scenarios and pathways
October 2020 | AURES Report 

Catherine Mitchell

How inadequate policy action and governance is a barrier to a sustainable and cost effective energy system (PDF)
July 2020 | Citizen Advice Series

Jess Britton and Urszula Papajak

Local government innovation in the energy sector
June 2020 | Florence School of Regulation blog

Jess Britton and Richard Lowes

Submission to BEIS Heat Network Market Framework Consultation (PDF)
June 2020 | Submission to BEIS 

Catherine Mitchell, Richard Lowes and Jess Britton

Submission to Labour Party Green Recovery Package Consultation (PDF)
April 2020 | Submission to Labour Party 

Rachel Bray and Bridget Woodman

Cornwall Local Energy Market - Organisations Survey Report (PDF)
July 2020 | EPG Working Paper 2003

Emily Judson

Governance Challenges emerging from Energy Digitalisation (PDF)
June 2020 | Cornwall Insight's Energy Spectrum, Issue 719

Lena Kitzing, Oscar Fitch-Roy, Marco Islam, Catherine Mitchell

An evolving risk perspective for policy instrument choice in sustainability transitions
June 2020 | Environmental Innovations and Societal Transitions

Thomas Pownall, Calum Harvey-Scholes and Bridget Woodman

Submission to BEIS Contracts for Difference for Low Carbon Electricity Generation: Consultation (PDF)
May 2020 | Submission to BEIS 

Emily Judson, Iain Soutar and Catherine Mitchell

Governance Challenges Emerging from Energy Digitalisation (PDF)
June 2020 | EPG Discussion Paper 2002

Calum Harvey-Scholes and Emily Judson

Submission to Cornwall Council Consultation: Climate change Development Plan (PDF)
May 2020 | Submission to Cornwall Council 

Rachel Bray and Bridget Woodman

Cornwall Local Energy Market - Householder Survey Report (PDF)
May 2020 | EPG Working Paper 2001 

Jan Rosenow and Richard Lowes

Heating without the hot air: Principles for smart heat electrification (PDF)
March 2020 | Regulatory Assistance Project 
May 2020 | Online Presentation with RAP

Richard Lowes

Is Hydrogen the solution to net-zero home heating?
March 2020 | Views featured in the Guardian 

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