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On 3 September 2024, the UK Government published its factsheet on the Great British Energy Bill which received its Second Reading in the House of Commons on 5 September.

The purpose of the Bill is to establish a publicly-owned energy company designed to drive clean energy deployment and support the UK Government’s aim of decarbonising the UK’s electricity system by 2030.

Great British Energy (“GBE”) will be backed by an initial capitalization of £8.3 billion over the life of this Parliament. It will have five overarching functions:

  • Project investment and ownership – GBE will seek to generate revenue through the ownership and operation of clean energy projects;
  • Project development – GBE will identify and develop clean energy assets in partnership with others. To this end, the Government has announced a partnership between GBE and The Crown Estate (which owns, amongst other things, the seabed off the coast of the UK). The intention is that together, GBE and The Crown Estate will bring forward 20-30 GW of additional off-shore wind leases by 2030 and leverage up to £30-60 billion of private investment;
  • Local Power Plan – GBE will deliver a Local Power Plan with the aim of partnering with and funding local authorities and community groups to roll out small and medium-sized renewables projects using established technologies, up to 8GW in total;
  • Supply chain – GBE will work with others,  including The National Wealth Fund, which has allocated a further £7.3 billion of funding to the UK Infrastructure Bank, to support clean energy supply chains – from off-shore wind to carbon capture  and storage.
  • Nuclear – Great British Nuclear was  established in March 2023 to provide specialist skills to deliver the Government’s nuclear, including small nuclear, programme: GBE will assist in as yet unspecified ways, to support the work of Great British Nuclear.

A consultation  process is already underway to identify the policy priorities for GBE. Under the Great British Energy Bill, a Statement of Strategic Priorities must be developed and laid before Parliament as soon as possible after GBE is established. Juergen Maier, former Siemens UK CEO, has been appointed as Chair of GBE and is understood to be engaging with shareholders on GBE’s policy priorities.