Learnings

Outcomes

The key finding from the project is that consumers wanted certainty around the exit scenario at the start of the trial and did not want to wait until further details are known to make a final decision.

Consumers were very concerned that they would be penalised for participating in the trial if they were left with higher energy costs post-trial and potentially more disturbance if they needed a new energy system to be fitted or they are reverted back to natural gas. They wanted to understand very clearly what would happen post trial before they signed up to the trial. They also wanted the ability to leave the trial early if required. 

Consumers did not want to be forced into a having a technology post-trial, instead they wanted to be have a decision to suit them and their circumstances.                                                                                                

In terms of technical assessment of safety it was found remaining on hydrogen is the safest option as no further work needed to be undertaken – reverting back to natural gas or electricity would increase risk as new appliances/systems would have to be fitted and the potential for accidents/inadequate fittings increases.

In terms of cost – there is a high degree of uncertainty currently around the future costs of various exit strategies – particularly around exit to heat pumps/electricity - and these would need to be fully articulated/refined as technical knowledge increases. If everyone is converted to electricity then the anticipated upgrades to the network will result in a high cost per household. The cost for reverting back to natural gas is well known and can be articulated with a good degree of certainty. Continuation of hydrogen depends on the ongoing cost of the hydrogen. The support for the hydrogen is currently unknown so we took the assumption that the cost of hydrogen would be broadly similar to what natural gas is today, clearly this has a high degree of uncertainty.                                                                 

Lessons Learnt

This was the initial project to be done and set the context for any future projects in deciding what the final exit for the trial should be. 

It is clear from our interviews that any future project should involve the consumers as any outcome needs to be agreed by them and they expect to be able to make their own decisions on what the exit of the trial should look like. The decision on exit should not be based on purely costs and technical decisions – the consumer should be central to any decision.