An Open Energy Steering Group was convened on Tuesday 17 February 2026. The Steering Group comprises a wide range of industry leaders and subject matter experts spanning the commercial, regulatory and government landscapes. The Steering Group plays a critical role in Open Energy’s development, providing a sector perspective that ensures that Open Energy is designed for and with the energy industry.
Meeting Aims
- Support for the use case for 2026
- Support the governance process
- Connect us with new potential members
Summary:
- It was agreed that:
- The 2026 roadmap will move from engagement and prioritisation early in the year to implementation activity later in the year.
- Remaining organisations will be asked to complete outstanding terms of reference signatures, where that is possible.
- It was noted that:
- An update was given on activities since the last SG, including:
- Government and Ofgem activity is increasingly focused on ensuring greater visibility of distributed and flexible energy assets.
- Elexon has gone live with its flexibility market facilitator role, and the new Flexibility Commissioner has been announced.
- NESO and XOSERVE have announced a strategic partnership on consolidation and sharing of gas data which will help facilitate and streamline whole-system planning.
- Ofgem published its Forward Workplan for 2026/7.
- RECCO published the design consultation on its Consumer Consent solution.
- The intended publication of the DESNZ/Ofgem Digitalisation Vision in Q1 2026 was confirmed.
- The Smart Data Council has resumed and is developing UK guidance for smart data schemes.
- The Perseus programme has broad participation and commercial offerings are expected from 2026, with a £5-10bn SME opportunity by 2030.
- Feedback to the Open Data access controls paper has been positive across the sector.
- The 2026 priority use cases will focus on UC04 – cross-sector storm response or UC05 – industrial and commercial flexibility.
- An update was given on activities since the last SG, including:
- It was discussed that:
- Practical implementation and real use cases may be more persuasive to policymakers than theoretical proposals.
- A Community Interest Company (CIC) based SPV funding model could support multi-year funding and participation from multiple network operators but, given IB1’s non-profit, public benefit status, there was not a strong case to change to such a model.
Next meeting: Thursday 7 May 2026 14:30-16:00 BST
Formal records, including attendees, are maintained by the secretariat.
These are confidential to the Steering Group Members.