The Connectology® Podcast by Roadnight Taylor
Roadnight Taylor’s influential team of elite grid connections specialists (Connectologists®) and their expert guests help you to better understand distribution and transmission network connections, and how to acquire them faster, at less cost and at lower risk.
Listen on:
Episodes
Thursday Jan 04, 2024
Thursday Jan 04, 2024
In this Grid news and views’ episode, Pete Aston hosts colleagues Catherine Cleary and Philip Bale - as well as the freshly-minted fifth Connectologist®, Kyle Murchie - as they discuss National Grid ESO's progress with two-step offers, when this will come to an end, and:
The proposed/impending introduction of LOAs (letters of authority) at transmission
Progress on large transmission reinforcement works
Reintroduction of pre-app calls at transmission (in some cases)
Application of Appendix G into CUSC
The harmonisation of definitions of large power stations across the country
Progress with SGT charging reform
Recorded 13 December 2023
Links:
Website: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/connectology/
Newsletter sign up: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/newsletter/
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/roadnight-taylor-ltd/
Talk to us at info@roadnighttaylor.co.uk
Monday Dec 18, 2023
Monday Dec 18, 2023
With increasing levels of risk and complexity associated with investments in large-scale energy projects – not least with regards their grid connections – it is no surprise that investors are increasingly seeking the highest levels of specialised grid expertise for their connection due diligence.
In this podcast, two of Roadnight Taylor’s elite connection specialists – Connectologists® Catherine Cleary and Pete Aston – discuss the key themes that they see determining the success of a connection and of a grid due diligence exercise, and some of the areas of risk that they see having been missed by third parties when a post-acquisition project arrives in their emergency room.
Recorded August 2023
Links:
Website: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/connectology/
Newsletter sign up: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/newsletter/
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/roadnight-taylor-ltd/
Talk to us at info@roadnighttaylor.co.uk
Wednesday Nov 22, 2023
Wednesday Nov 22, 2023
Changes both to Distribution Network Operators' modelling of curtailment and to their real-time operation of ANM schemes are impacting on developers' and investors' abilities to make informed investment decisions - and may lead to significant lost yield over and above what would have been anticipated on any given project. In this shifting landscape it pays to be informed in order to identify those projects with the greatest risks, and to engage positively with system planning teams to seek to address those risks early.
On this podcast, three of Roadnight Taylor’s elite connections engineers – Connectologists® Catherine Cleary, Pete Aston and Philip Bale – explore the issues, help identify higher risk projects, suggest mitigations and point to industry initiatives that may bring about positive change in this important area.
Recorded on 09 November 2023
Links:
Website: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/connectology/
Newsletter sign up: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/newsletter/
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/roadnight-taylor-ltd/
Talk to us at info@roadnighttaylor.co.uk
Tuesday Nov 07, 2023
Tuesday Nov 07, 2023
Two of our Connectologists®, specialist connections engineers Pete Aston and Philip Bale, discuss the new rules regarding the treatment of Battery Energy Storage Schemes (BESS) by Distribution Network Operator (DNOs) with regards to network connections. The change is as a result of the ENA's three-point plan to accelerate connections and came into force on 30 September 2023.
This is an important, time-sensitive topic that will be of interest to battery storage developers, and developers and investors of large-scale commercial, industrial, real estate and housing with large demand or decarbonisation requirements.
The three tactical solutions and how they might impact schemes and developments are discussed.
Recorded on 26 October 2023
Links:
ENA's Battery Storage Connections - Tactical Solutions Guidance Notes
What are firm and non-firm connections?
Website: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/connectology/
Newsletter sign up: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/newsletter/
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/roadnight-taylor-ltd/
Talk to us at info@roadnighttaylor.co.uk
Wednesday Oct 25, 2023
Wednesday Oct 25, 2023
In this Grid news and views’ episode, Connectologist® Nikki Pillinger hosts colleagues Catherine Cleary and Philip Bale as they report back from National Grid ESO's customer connections seminar on 16 October, and in addition: 1) Update on the Technical Limits initiative phasing, assessments and timings2) Flag that DNO's re-assessment of asset ratings is bringing about significantly higher levels of ANM curtailment risk 3) Discuss DUoS charging increases as a result of socialising of reinforcement under SCR4) Highlight new guidance notes for the treatment of storage by DNOs
Recorded 18 October 2023
Links:
Website: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/connectology/
Newsletter sign up: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/newsletter/
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/roadnight-taylor-ltd/
Talk to us at info@roadnighttaylor.co.uk
Wednesday Oct 11, 2023
Wednesday Oct 11, 2023
With connection timescales in the late 2030s becoming the new normal for distribution connections, the ENA's Technical Limits initiative seeks to better utilise transmission headroom at each GSP in order to accelerate connections of smaller, more agile projects that are ready to connect.
In this episode Roadnight Taylor's four Connectologists® help developers and investors to understand the implications for the portfolios of large-scale projects they are building or acquiring.
Recorded 6 September 2023
Links:
Website: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/connectology/
Newsletter sign up: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/newsletter/
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/roadnight-taylor-ltd/
Talk to us at info@roadnighttaylor.co.uk
Monday Sep 25, 2023
Monday Sep 25, 2023
Our team of Connectologists® return for a third podcast in their ‘Grid news and views’ series to discuss some of the most important updates in their field. In this episode our influential connection specialists, among other news, discuss the latest intervention from the ENA and Ofgem regarding the treatment of storage.Additionally, the podcast addresses a range of topical threads:
Changes to the planning regime for onshore wind, and whether they are significant enough to cause a rush of connection applications in England - or even cancellations
The Electricity Networks Commissioner's (Nick Winser) report on accelerating electricity transmission network deployment
The ENA's 'Technical Limits' initiative and how this may enable some embedded connections ahead of transmission reinforcements
Moves to make landowner consent a requirement in transmission applications
Some CUSC mods for storage developers and investors to be aware of
Recorded 6 September 2023
Links:
Website: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/connectology/
Newsletter sign up: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/newsletter/
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/roadnight-taylor-ltd/
Talk to us at info@roadnighttaylor.co.uk
Monday Sep 18, 2023
Monday Sep 18, 2023
With the choice of applying for a Bilateral Embedded Generator Agreement (BEGA) or a Bilateral Embedded Licence Exemptible Large Generator Agreement (BELLA) having such high potential impacts on the viability, cost or timing of a connection - and therefore on a project - it pays to understand the implications as well as the high-level choices you will have to make.
Diligent development Directors and Investment Directors will be better placed to make the right calls after listening to this episode, in which two of Roadnight Taylor’s elite connection specialists – Connectologists® Catherine Cleary and Pete Aston – discuss the fundamentals, and where they have seen others go wrong.
Recorded 6 September 2023
Links:
Changing from a BEGA to a BELLA
Notification of Insufficient System Margin (NISM) Overview
Website: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/connectology/
Newsletter sign up: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/newsletter/
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/roadnight-taylor-ltd/
Talk to us at info@roadnighttaylor.co.uk
Thursday Aug 31, 2023
Thursday Aug 31, 2023
Insights to help you understand projects’ abnormal running risks, and how to mitigate them.
With the levels of risk involved in consenting or acquiring transmission-connected projects, understanding outage risk should be near the top of any good Development or Investment Director's list.
In this podcast hosted by Pete Aston, two other Roadnight Taylor elite connection specialists (Connectologists®) Catherine Cleary and Philip Bale, discuss the key themes that they will cover in an upcoming webinar on this increasingly popular subject.
The webinar is on Wednesday 8 November. More details will follow on our website later, but you can register on Zoom here.
Recorded 11 July 2023
Links:
You can request a recording of the outage risk at distribution webinar here.
Website: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/connectology/
Newsletter sign up: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/newsletter/
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/roadnight-taylor-ltd/
Talk to us at info@roadnighttaylor.co.uk
Wednesday Aug 16, 2023
Wednesday Aug 16, 2023
Our team of Connectologists® return for a second podcast in their ‘Grid news and views’ series to discuss some of the most important updates in their field. In this second episode our influential connection specialists, among other news, discuss National Grid’s long term connections reform piece, exploring the changes it results in, and when we can expect an industry update.
Additionally, the podcast addresses other topics, with both specific and wider breadths:
The modification to the commercial connection use of system charging and who it benefits
Discussion of the distribution/transmission boundary as laid out in the ENA’s three-point plan
Some wider news, including Energy UK’s forecast about the UK’s pace of growth in low carbon generation, and how we charge for super grid transformer reinforcements
The modification proposal to introduce queue management at transmission
Project Progression thresholds
Recorded: 03 August 2023
Links:
Website: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/connectology/
Newsletter sign up: https://roadnighttaylor.co.uk/newsletter/
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/roadnight-taylor-ltd/
Talk to us at info@roadnighttaylor.co.uk
Who are Roadnight Taylor?
The Roadnight Taylor team has a connection success rate some five times greater than the market as a whole — on large-scale demand-led projects (housing, commercial and industrial) and energy schemes from solar, wind, battery storage, nuclear, hydrogen and EV charging and from 11,000 to 400,000 volts.
Their Connectologists® are respected and revered within the connections community for their niche expertise, insight, influence, and thought-leadership – and for the edge they give their clients relative to their clients' peers — through acquiring viable distribution and transmission network connections faster, at lower risk, and for less cost.