Cadent has challenged the IT world to help them to create the technology solution of the future – today
Tony Ballance, Kate Jones and Howard Forster from Cadent hosting this year’s Global Tech Conference
Cadent’s second Global Technology Conference in London gathered over 75 IT companies and Europe’s largest gas distributors to discuss digital transformation, decarbonisation, and the vital role gas networks play in achieving net-zero by 2050.
The UK’s largest gas distribution company Cadent hosted its second Global Technology Conference in London last month, attended by over 75 information technology companies from around the world, along with the largest gas distribution companies in Europe. All with the objective to help Cadent on its mission to digitally transform its business.
Kate Jones, Cadent’s Chief Information Officer explained, “We have brought together thought leaders and technology partners to accelerate our collective change agenda, to decarbonise our future and understand the crucial role gas networks will play in delivering net-zero.
“To find technology solutions that enable more flexible ways of working that help decarbonise our industry and digitally transform the ways we operate.”
Tech giants such as Google and Amazon have already started to help Cadent with new solutions. This year new challenge statements were put to the conference to find digital solutions to reduce emissions from its network, innovative new ways to reduce biomethane connection costs and create capacity for biomethane injection, and solutions to help achieve decarbonisation.
Along with tech companies were Europe’s largest gas distribution companies, explaining how they have achieved some of these goals, as they are further along their journey to decarbonise. Paolo Gallo from Italgas reiterated their experiences that 100 per cent electrification is not a deliverable solution and gas needs to be part of the transition to achieve the 2050 net-zero commitments.
Bill Esterson MP, chair of the House of Commons Energy Security and Net Zero Select Committee joined hosts Cadent’s Chief Executive Officer, Steve Fraser, and Chief Strategy and Regulation Officer, Tony Balance, along with European gas network and global IT company executives to discuss what is happening in Europe and how technology has helped them to transition to greener energy companies.
Europe’s gas distribution companies gave examples explaining that to achieve decarbonisation and the transition to net-zero, gas and electricity are not either/or, both are needed, both are necessary and a whole system solution is needed.
Much of Europe is further ahead than the UK in implementing the transition, with greater social acceptance, technological development and a willingness to reverse unsuccessful strategies.
Three key priorities were discussed at the conference:
- Promoting hybrid heat technologies
One of the big benefits of hybrids is that it is not necessary to spend billions of pounds to upgrade the electricity distribution network to cope with those huge amounts of power that currently go through the gas network. Hybrids have the potential to reduce natural gas demand by 80 per cent
- Proactively getting methane leakage down
While leakage will be reduced by the iron mains replacement programme, the deployment of technology is revolutionising detection of fugitive emissions
- More Biomethane in the gas network
The example of France’s achievement here is crucial to UK infrastructure development
Howard Forster, Cadent’s Chief Operating Officer, said, “We need to learn from experiences in Europe, how technology is essential to help us transition and decarbonise our energy. Gas is needed to transition to net-zero. Sharing these experiences and learnings with policymakers and politicians helps us on the road to achieving our 2050 net-zero goals.”
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