CASE STYDY 1
Network Diversification & Resilience
Expanding usage of the gas network
Case study: Network Diversification & Resilience
- Project reference: NIA_NGN_424
- Project partner: Analysys Mason, DNV and nuron
- Project status: Complete
- Overall project value: £184,989.00
- Innovation theme: Flexibility and market evolution
INNOVATION THEME:
Expanding usage of the gas network
As we transition towards net zero, the UK’s energy landscape is changing and the future of gas remains uncertain.
Our gas network has been developed and maintained over many years due to vast investment from customers, paid for through their energy bills. We have a huge responsibility to ensure the network is being used in the best ways possible, both today and in a low-gas future.
One way of ensuring the future of the network and retention of consumer investment is to look at how we can reuse and repurpose our existing assets to transport other services. We partnered with nuron, Analysys Mason and DNV to see if this would be viable, first exploring the possibility of installing a ducted infrastructure into our live gas pipes to house other utility systems, including optical fibre and telecoms cables.
The project consisted of four parts:
1. Technical review: A thorough investigation to determine the best ways to install ducted infrastructure and optical fibre into and out of the gas network
2. Regulatory review: An analysis of current Ofgem licence conditions and identification of the modifications that will need to be made to these to enable us to install ducted infrastructure and other utility systems into the network in the future
3. Commercial review: A whole market review of potential suppliers and users who are likely to utilise the gas network for alternative uses to ensure it will be financially viable
4. Operational review: An exploration of how ducted services can be housed in ways that won’t interfere with the day-to-day running and servicing of live gas pipes
Lewis Kirkwood Innovation Development Manager at NGN
“This experimental project has demonstrated that our existing gas network can be effectively utilised to house and transport other utilities and systems, to meet changing needs and future energy use. It’s proved we can repurpose the network in a range of exciting ways, all with minimum disruption to customers. It’s also helped us look to the future and explore the possibilities open to us, which will enable us to effectively plan and adapt as we transition to net zero.
This is the first project of its kind, and we will now begin to explore a wider scope of other services we could potentially repurpose our network for, including electrical cables, synthetic fuels, heat networks and sustainable aviation fuels.”
Key benefits:
- Provided evidence that it’s possible to install a ducted infrastructure into the live gas network
- Highlighted the different ways that the existing gas network can be used in a low-gas future
- Platform to explore other services and systems that could be deployed within ducted pipework in the network, including electrical cables, heat networks and synthetic fuels
- Determined that optical fibre monitoring systems could also be installed to help us better understand the current condition of the gas network
