National Grid Gas Transmission (NGGT)

By USGBC MA Communications

National Grid Gas Transmission (NGGT) has launched its call for ideas for the 2018 Network Innovation Competition (NIC)

Here in NGGT, we’re looking for potential partners to help us find our next flagship low carbon innovation project. We’re asking innovators across the industry to share their ideas with us on how we can operate and maintain the gas transmission network faster, cheaper, greener and more flexibly than ever before.

After internal review, we’ll choose the best idea or ideas to take forward for the 2018 Network Innovation Competition (NIC) process. The competition is operated by the regulator, Ofgem, and it makes up to £20m of funding available to inspire large-scale and industry innovations across the gas industry.

Successful projects are awarded the funding they need to research, develop and demonstrate the smartest new ideas and technologies of tomorrow.

The efficiency challenge

There’s always room to improve – and our customers expect us to do so. How can we deliver the same work, but much cheaper, faster or more flexibly – without ever compromising safety? Can we find and prove new methods to isolate, modify, repair, divert or decommission our assets better than before?

Challenges:

Cheaper, faster valve remediation, for example, solutions that require no excavation, less excavation, keyhole robotics and automation

Cheaper, faster decommissioning

Cheaper, faster diversions

Cheaper, faster network change and modifications

Flexible isolations, for example no-dig, less dig, inline, mobile, faster or cheaper, and inline isolations

 

Future of the National Transmission System (NTS)

While it’s difficult to predict the future for gas, we do expect it will require a more flexible and responsive network. What do we need to investigate and develop now in order to operate a more widely distributed gas system? How can we welcome non-traditional gas sources and be ready to meet future gas transmission network demands? And how can we get the gas and electricity infrastructure working more closely?

Challenges:

Operating a more distributed gas system

Designing for a future gas transmission network

Opening up opportunities for emerging or non-traditional gas sources, and developing new methods of interaction between the gas and electricity networks