Great British Energy (GBE) is central to this Government’s mission to make the UK a clean energy superpower and will play a pivotal role in accelerating the deployment of clean, secure, home-grown energy as the UK’s publicly owned clean energy company. GBE is putting energy back into the hands of the British public, enabling the benefits of the clean energy transition to flow back into communities, households and businesses, to protect billpayers for good.
At the spending review, the Government confirmed over £8.3 billion in capitalisation for GBE and Great British Energy Nuclear. The statement of strategic priorities—"the statement”— now sets out the Secretary of State’s vision for how Great British Energy should contribute to the mission. It does so by identifying two core objectives for GBE:
Drive clean energy deployment across the whole of the UK, as a strategic developer, investor, and owner of clean energy projects.
Ensure that UK taxpayers, billpayers, communities, and the current energy workforce benefit from the clean energy transition by increasing public ownership and community involvement in the development of clean energy projects, and by supporting jobs and economic growth across the UK.
The statement provides strategic direction by specifying that GBE should focus on three core groups of activities to deliver on GBE’s objectives:
The statement outlines the key principles for intervention. Underpinning these principles for intervention is a requirement for GBE to ensure that its portfolio of activities and investments is additional. The statement also outlines GBE’s long-term goal to become financially self-sustaining, and the importance of setting a clear path towards profitability with a plan for self-financing to be in place by 2030.
Partnerships with the private sector and other public sector organisations will be critical to GBE’s ability to deliver on its core objectives. The statement therefore provides detail on how GBE should work collaboratively with private and public sector organisations. This includes local and devolved governments, the National Wealth Fund, The Crown Estate and Great British Energy-Nuclear.
The statement also sets out the Secretary of State’s expectation that GBE put in place a robust corporate governance framework which adheres to corporate transparency principles.
GBE is foundational to this Government’s mission to bring energy security, protect billpayers, create good jobs and help protect future generations, and will be a key player in establishing the energy system of the future. In doing so, Great British Energy will demonstrate how modern public ownership can deliver a dynamic state which works with industry, workers, unions and local and devolved Governments to accelerate the clean energy transition and deliver benefits for citizens across the UK.
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