Abstract
New arrangements for the electricity industry in Great Britain came into effect on 31 March 1990 (Vesting Day). On that date the nationalized industry framework ceased to exist. In England and Wales (but not Scotland) the industry was restructured so as to separate the activities of generation, transmission, distribution and supply, and the principle of competition was introduced into both generation and supply. Apart from Nuclear Electric and Scottish Nuclear, which remain in government ownership, all the other electricity companies in Great Britain — generators, the National Grid Company, the 12 regional electricity companies, the two Scottish companies and other suppliers — now operate within the private sector. The Office of Electricity Regulation (OFFER) was set up to regulate the activities of the restructured electricity industry. In the first part of this paper, I shall describe some recent developments in combined heat and power (CHP) as reflected in three aspects of the regulatory regime: the issuing of generation licences, the support for non-fossil fuels and the CHP database. However, the introduction of CHP is by no means plain sailing. There are numerous economic and administrative hurdles to overcome. The second part of this paper discusses a few developments in the regulatory framework which should be of assistance to CHP.
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