Targeted workshops

We held four targeted workshops on emerging connections topics suggested by our customers.

Our customers asked us whether we could run workshops on emerging connections topics. We already run a twice-yearly Connections Customer Forum which provides an overview of what’s happening in our industry and our business. However, we thought the suggestion of smaller, subject specific workshops where customers could engage with our experts and other likeminded individuals, was a good one.

We made a commitment to run four workshops, one per quarter, on topics suggested by our connections customers. In reality, some of our workshops proved so popular that we chose to re-run them for a second time.

Our first workshop took place in June 2017 and explored the topic of local energy supply of electricity (i.e. local customers purchasing energy from local electricity generation suppliers). At this workshop, as part of the wider programme of activities, our Head of Connections Services led a surgery for stakeholders struggling to understand our connections process.

Our second workshop on domestic energy storage held in September 2017 proved the most popular, with all available spaces filled within the first few hours of us announcing the event. This was one of the workshops that we chose to re-run (in November 2017) for customers on our waiting lists. The workshop, which focused on current and emerging solutions and what we could do to facilitate the connection of more domestic storage, generated a significant amount of discussion. All attendees who responded told us they were ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’ with their experience on the day.

For our third workshop we sent an email to our connections customers asking them to vote on the topics they would like to see covered. The overwhelming response was in favour of Connection Offer Expenses (A&D fees). We ran two drop-in workshop sessions at our Connections Customer Forum in November 2017, attended by approximately 30 customers. During the workshop attendees had the opportunity to ask us about the introduction of Connections Offer Expenses and what it could mean for them and their clients, they also told us how they wanted us to communicate with them about the changes that were happening. Customers who attended told us they found the event beneficial.

Our final workshop on connecting Electric Vehicles (EVs) took place in March 2018 and was attended by 33 customers. During the workshop we discussed the impact of EVs on local energy networks and answered questions on diversification and the introduction of unmetered charging points posed by representatives from Local Authorities in our region. EVs are a topic of interest and as uptake continues to increase, we expect to have on-going discussions with our stakeholders on the topic.

Looking forward, we will continue to operate our successful programme of quarterly connections workshops and to talk to our customers about the topics they would like to see covered at future events.