Lord Hutton of Furness

The Energy Independence Bill has now been announced in the King’s Speech. The Bill will legislate for the powers the government needs to fight people’s corner and go further and faster on the government’s clean energy mission. The Bill will be introduced as soon as parliamentary time allows.

Underground gas storage plays an important role in supporting Britain’s energy security.

We recently consulted on whether any government action is needed to maintain gas security of supply across the energy transition, including possible measures to support current and potential new UK gas storage operators.

The government will publish its response to the Gas Security in Transition consultation in due course.

Once introduced, Transitional Energy Certificates may be issued to manage incidental production of petroleum from offshore activities including gas storage, hydrogen storage and carbon dioxide storage. Further detail on the application process and eligibility will be set out through legislation and subsequent guidance from the North Sea Transition Authority.

The government is supporting private investment in long duration electricity storage (LDES) through the LDES cap and floor policy, which is being delivered by Ofgem. This will deliver the first LDES projects in Great Britain for over four decades.

On 26 June 2026, Ofgem published minded-to decisions for the first LDES application window, supporting 16 projects totalling 7.6GW of power and 137GWh of storage capacity.

The government’s Clean Flexibility Roadmap Update of 13 July 2026 contains further details on steps to deliver LDES, as well as other forms of energy storage such as hydrogen storage and power.

The government published further information on its approach to the criteria for Transitional Energy Certificates on 21 April.

The Energy Independence Bill was announced in the King’s Speech, in which the government committed to manage existing oil and gas fields for their lifetime and show climate leadership by meeting the manifesto commitments.

Following the conclusion of the legislative process, the North Sea Transition Authority will set out further guidance.

Decisions on funding post March 2025 are a matter for the Budget on October 30th.

We recognise the challenges this brings for some projects. We are working closely with local authorities and key stakeholders to ensure a smooth transition to future funding, so communities continue to benefit from this vital support. In the meantime, officials remain available to discuss any issues impacting delivery.