2022: Our Year In Review
rb&m partners work on a range of projects at the heart of the energy transition. In addition to being the microgeneration sector’s most experienced audit team, we’ve developed audit strategies for heat networks and provide the audit service for the energy flexibility compliance scheme.
Building consumer trust is the key to energy decarbonisation and, to that end, we’ve been working on a range of new tools and methodologies to help consumers make informed choices about renewable energy generation performance. From our seats on five technology industry working groups to our development of audit regimes, and from our experience in developing industry and consumer guidance to ground-breaking research. All of this work gives us a unique perspective on the challenges facing the energy transition markets. As a window into our work and experience, our 2022 Year in Review acts as our own mini annual report. If you have any questions about rb&m’s work or want to know more please use our contact page. With best wishes for 2023.
Introduction: 2022 was a tumultuous year in the energy sector with spiralling fuel costs, the collapse of several Ofgem regulated suppliers and the end of the Renewable Heat Incentive.
More positively however, the UK Government introduced the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, the market for Solar PV and battery storage surged and thousands more installers sought the MCS certification they need to sell and install low carbon technologies eligible for government incentive support. Scotland's decision to offer homeowners £7,500 (£9,000 in rural areas) for heat pump installs was ground-breaking.
Other important changes include the planned statutory regulation for heat networks and the acceleration of the trend towards decentralised energy solutions and grid flexibility services for domestic consumers. rb&m work at the cutting edge of decentralised energy in policy and research, market intelligence, technical development and regulation and our work on these issues in 2022 is set out below.
rb&m: technical
Building trust in performance forecasts
Consumers want to be able to make informed choices in the domestic renewables market and recent market research shows that the two consumer protection measures considered most important are the compulsory provision of reliable performance estimates and the provision of fair contracts. No other consumer protection measures were chosen as more important. rb&m has long experience in auditing renewable energy performance estimates and in 2022 we were commissioned to develop new performance estimate methodologies for heat pumps, biomass, and wind and our ideas are being considered by industry working groups.
Heat Pumps
The proposed new method for heat pumps focuses on the link between emitter upgrades and Torecast sers and removes scur as the default coefficient of performance metric used for the forecast efficiency. The proposed new algorithm uses the property energy demand and degree days to estimate property specific heat loss.
Wind Energy
Small-scale wind turbine performance forecasts are currently based on average wind speeds for specific locations. This limited information can be justified for small projects where the cost of site monitoring is prohibitive, but it doesn't offer the reliability needed for larger projects. The new and optional forecasting tool will offer a consumer friendly forecast based on standard site windspeed monitoring.
Biomass
Our proposed new method for consumer performance forecasts for biomass pellet and log boilers incorporates an estimate of system losses to provide an annual fuel requirement combined with a utilisation factor metric. The current method is based on boiler nominal efficiency and is likely to underestimate fuel consumption.
Contact Colin Meek at colin@r-b-m.com for more information about our technical projects.
All three new methods developed by rb&m will be reviewed in the first half of 2023. This work was commissioned by MCS.
rb&m: audit
Due Diligence
rb&m provide expert due diligence in the energy sector covering directors, marketing, scheme compliance, performance claims and company history. rb&m partners all work on due diligence reports for the Renewable Energy Consumer Code.
rb&m: audit
microgeneration selling and installing
Intensive audits of MCS Certified Installers for RECC rb&m is the microgeneration sector's most experienced audit team with an in-depth and firsthand knowledge of the market, built on the experience of conducting well over 300 site audits since 2010 as well as dozens of intensive desk-top audits. From wind energy companies in Shetland to tiny one-man-and-a-van installers in Cornwall; and from Solar PV giants in Manchester to technology pioneers in East Anglia, rb&m have seen and recorded every kind of good and bad practice imaginable. The sector needs to strain every sinew to prevent miss-selling and build consumer trust in service and performance.
In 2022, the rb&m auditors carried out 13 intensive audits covering every angle of the consumer-facing service including contractual documents, advertising, complaints handling and after sales. The audits include technical assessment of the formal MCS performance estimates and any other 'alternative' performance forecast provided. In 2022, rb&m carried out detailed assessments of 70 installer performance forecasts.
rb&m: guidance
Heat Pumps Best Practice Guide
rb&m partner Colin Meek was commissioned by MCS and RECC to provide the consumer protection content for the second edition of Domestic Heat Pumps: A Best Practice Guide for installers. The complete rewrite streamlines all contractual information and will include updates on the new MCS standard for design and installation. The new version will be published later in 2023.
rb&m: technical
Clean energy carbon mitigation analysis
rb&m provided the carbon mitigation calculations for the 2022 MCS Low Carbon Landscapes report: https://mcscertified.com/low-carbon-landscapes launched in December 2022 by MCS. Low Carbon Landscapes updates the landmark report Renewing Britain which was authored by rb&m in 2021 and published by MCS and is available here: https://renewingbritain.com/. rb&m has developed carbon mitigation analysis tools for all five of the main microgeneration technologies and our analysis provides figures for cumulative COze savings and annual savings for each technology. The carbon mitigation analysis is broken down by technology and UK country and it compares the carbon savings with 'relatable' sources of emissions such as long-haul flights. Technical details are provided on page 57 of the Low Carbon Landscapes report.
rb&m: audit
Heat networks
Heat service delivery and complaints handling rb&m has continued to work closely with the Heat Trust as their audit provider. The Heat Trust is a consumer protection body ensuring stringent heat delivery service standards tested through regular audits. Heat networks will be subject to new legal supervision from around 2024 and the Heat Trust is working with Ofgem to develop the regulations that will apply. The Government has urged all of UK's heat networks to join the Heat Trust to ensure they are 'regulation ready'. In 2022 we worked with Ofgem and the Heat Trust on the auditing process, finished 8 heat delivery audits, helped develop a methodology to audit heat trust complaints monitoring and delivered two audits using the new tool.
rb&m: audit
Flexibility aggregators
Optimisation services for business users
We continued our partnership with the compliance scheme for energy aggregators - Flex Assure. The Flex Assure Code is designed to protect business energy users that contract with energy flexibility service providers. Code members include Flexitricity. This scheme ensures minimum standards for business customers and rb&m is providing the audit service to ensure scheme compliance. SSEN is working with Flex Assure and others to develop HomeFlex, an equivalent for domestic energy users.
