Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) and Dundee City Council have agreed to partner on the Regional Energy System Optimisation Planning (RESOP) Project, to develop a tool that will support Dundee's green economic recovery and its net zero ambitions.
Dundee has been recognised as the most visionary city in Europe for electric vehicles (EVs) and the City Council has set an objective to become a net zero city by 2045. As a progressive local authority, Dundee is developing its understanding around the infrastructure needed to support low carbon technologies, such as EVs and decarbonised heat, that form the best understood pathway to net zero.
The NIA-funded RESOP Project intends to support that objective. RESOP will develop a whole system planning tool in close partnership with Dundee City Council, that can incorporate the objectives and drivers for local authorities and businesses as they seek to protect jobs and rebuild economic growth in synergy with the city's transition to net zero, whilst assessing the impact of those plans on the local electricity network. The tool will be able to model likely outcomes of future scenarios, thereby supporting better informed local decision making, which will be fundamental in securing sustainable economic growth.
To fully decarbonise heat and transport by electrification, better information is needed to ensure network operators can manage new demand. Equally, low carbon technologies have a valuable role in helping to balance the network by providing flexibility at key times. RESOP will allow the best whole system solution to be developed, taking into account a wide range of assets and infrastructure, to meet the needs of the city whilst delivering best value for communities.
This project announcement follows publication of SSE's Greenprint, the five point action plan to help the economy rebound from the impact of coronavirus whilst taking action to meet net zero targets. The Greenprint calls for communities to be empowered in the net zero transition through deployment of Local Area Energy Plans (LAEPs). The RESOP tool will be instrumental in giving local communities a greater say in their energy future and helping to accelerate the decarbonisation of heat and transport.
Stewart Reid, Head of Future Networks for SSEN said:
"Dundee City Council is a leading local authority in the transition to a cleaner, greener future and was a natural choice as partner on the RESOP Project. SSEN stands ready to invest in the green recovery in coming years and is proud to be delivering innovative, deliverable solutions that can help unlock investment and a net zero future. We are looking forward to working closely with the team in Dundee to understand how SSEN can best support the city as it builds a green economy."
"Once operational, SSEN intends to make the tool more widely available, to support other local authorities with their own decision making and to help them to meet their increasingly ambitious net zero targets."
Councillor John Alexander, Leader of Dundee City Council said:
"We are moving towards becoming a sustainable city that plays a leading role in Scotland's goal to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045 or sooner. Our Climate Action Plan published last year sets out the first stage on this journey as we continue to invest and innovate in low carbon solutions and show how our local economy can transition to net zero in a way that strengthens our communities."
"Making sure that the right decisions and infrastructure are established will put us on the best footing for a lasting green recovery and one that creates long-term benefits and local resilience. We are delighted to be working with SSEN on the RESOP Project to develop the ways that will give us insight into how to do that."
RESOP is funded by £343,000 from Ofgem's Network Innovation Allowance (NIA). To read more about the project, click here.