Working groups

RenewableUK’s working groups play a vital role in shaping our consultation responses and producing policy papers that outline our key priorities for both members and the wider sector, whilst our Strategic Committee provides oversight and steers the activities of working groups by ensuring they deliver to support organisational strategy and objectives. The Strategic Committee also shapes our work in a number of cross-cutting areas, developing policy positions and feeding into research and analysis.

Working groups and the Strategic Committee are an essential part of our governance and work right across the key technologies we represent:

• offshore wind


• onshore wind


• floating offshore wind and marine technologies


• flexibility, storage and system integration.

Every two years we review the scope and priorities of these working groups to make sure they continue to reflect the top priorities of the sector, and we invite new applications to ensure our members are able to contribute their views and expertise as we develop policy positions, consultation responses, reports and thought leadership. We are excited to be launching the reconstitution of these groups for the 2025 – 2027 period.

Applications to join our reconstituted working groups are open until Wednesday 1 October, after which point they will be reviewed and successful applicants confirmed. We are also seeking nominations for Chairs and Vice Chairs, so please indicate if you are interested in either of these positions in your application. Once constituted, working groups will also be able to form relevant task and finish groups to tackle more specialist topics.

Access to working groups is reserved for RenewableUK members, and we will prioritise the allocation of spaces based on member category and expertise. If you would like to discuss your membership category and associated benefits, please contact Jeremy Sullivan.

Members not part of our working groups will continue to have the opportunity to be involved in our work and receive updates on key policy, public affairs and technology delivery priorities. To strengthen our member communications, we will be issuing weekly update emails and launching a monthly member forum where you will have the opportunity to hear from the team about our work priorities.

The full list of working groups and their Terms of Reference can be found below:

• Strategic Committee - overseeing and steering the activities of RenewableUK Working Groups, by ensuring they deliver to their objectives and the wider organisational strategy, whilst shaping our work in a number of cross-cutting areas, by developing policy positions and feeding into research and analysis. This group will be formed of working group chairs or relevant colleagues and Strategic Partners.

Markets

• Reformed National Market (RNM) Steering Group - overseeing and coordinating the activities of relevant working groups in progressing the policy framework underpinning an enhanced national electricity market, as well as being responsible for our overall narrative and positioning in relation to market reform work. This group will be constituted from Chairs / Vice Chairs of relevant working groups and other specialists in market reform.


• Market design - leading on the development of energy market policy design and renewable support schemes to enable clean power delivery and to maintain an optimal UK investment environment.

Grid

• Grid Steering Group - identifying and considering changes to strategy and policy related to electricity networks, as well as providing leadership, oversight and coordination to the grid subgroups and other work programmes and strategic developer groups. Note this group will be formed of chairs of Grid related Working Groups listed below:


• Charging - leading our work on network charging issues to ensure that network charging is cost reflective and does not discriminate against the technologies we represent. This will be integrated with SSEP, CSNP and Clean Power 2030, clarifying what levers provide what level of signal.


• Connections - monitoring the implementation and impact of the new ‘TMO4+’ connections regime, as well as the additional impact of the Government’s Clean Power Action Plan and the introduction of locational technology “buckets” on connections.


• Offshore transmission - addressing Offshore Transmission Owner (OFTO) policy development, and advocating on behalf of RUK members engaging with OFTO policy and any other offshore transmission specific policy.


• International market integration - focussing on interconnection and international cooperation within the grid policy umbrella, in particular UK-EU energy cooperation, North Sea political engagement and delivery of offshore hybrids.

Planning, environment and end-of-life

• Planning and Environment Strategy Group - driving strategic alignment and coordination across delivery, policy and engagement, particularly around marine planning, with a view to improving the overall efficiency of the planning system and reduce barriers to deployment.


• Onshore planning and environment (OPEG) - advocating for decreased barriers and challenges in the planning system and increased efficiency, speed, and robustness of the planning process, with a focus on terrestrial planning and environmental issues.


• Cymru planning and environment - enabling strategic collaboration and coordination of consenting matters to ensure the most effective and efficient engagement with the planning system and stakeholders in Wales.


• Late life and decommissioning - establishing industry positions in relation to onshore and offshore wind late-life and decommissioning policies, as well as building on the recommendations in our position paper and supporting establishing RUK positions on onshore late life and decommissioning.

System integration and storage

• Green hydrogen - addressing barriers to deployment, the building of associated infrastructure, and identifying interface issues between renewables and electrolysers, as well as shaping the required policy required to deliver green hydrogen in a decarbonised power system, including hydrogen to power.


• Storage and system integration - addressing market access for storage, barriers to co-location, and enabling policies to support increasing levels of storage and flexibility services to ensure system stability and manage variability in generation.


• Long Duration Energy Storage subgroup - monitoring and scrutinising the implementation of the Cap and Floor mechanism to ensure it drives investment into LDES as needed to support the delivery of the Clean Power 2030 target and a reliable, affordable electricity system.

Ports and manufacturing

• Ports and maritime - developing and evolving the policies and regulations to enable the development, upgrading and decarbonisation of port infrastructure to make them the building blocks of the UK’s FLOW and CP2030 ambitions.


• Manufacturing - developing and evolving our policy positions to underpin a competitive UK manufacturing sector that can deliver CP2030, drive regional industrial growth, and secure an increasing share of the global renewable energy supply chain.

Public affairs

• Public affairs forum - supporting the development and execution of the public affairs strategic priorities around Government and opposition engagement, whilst recognising devolved Government engagements sitting with RenewableUK Cymru, RenewableNI and Scottish Renewables.


• Cymru external affairs forum - ensuring that the strategic priorities set by the Cymru Strategy Group are communicated effectively to political, media, and other stakeholder audiences.


• Cymru strategic working group - providing a strategic steer for RenewableUK Cymru, ensuring maximum opportunity and efficacy to influence key policy developments impacting member interests.

Delivery groups

• Aviation Delivery Group (ADG) - helping shape and deliver coordinated policy and programmes which will build on the prevailing environment of co-existence between the wind and aviation industry, minimising friction in the development process and accelerating deployment.