Morning, Monday, 14th December 2026
Online
This conference will examine next steps for developing a Smart Data scheme for energy in Great Britain, including the potential implications for competition, innovation, investment and the development of new consumer and business services across the sector.
Following publication of the Energy Digitalisation Framework and Smart Data 2035, and as the Government consults on the proposed legislative framework for Smart Data within the energy system, discussion will focus on priorities for scheme design and governance, access to energy and smart meter data, and issues around shared infrastructure and interoperability. Attendees will consider what wider access to energy and smart meter data could mean for suppliers, networks, technology providers, flexibility providers, and investors, including opportunities to develop new products and services, improve customer engagement, support participation in flexibility markets and reduce barriers to market entry.
The agenda will assess the potential for data-driven services such as smart tariffs, smart EV charging, heat-pump optimisation, home energy management systems and automated flexibility. The growing role of data and AI in forecasting, network planning, system operation, asset management and customer service will be discussed, alongside commercial viability, routes to adoption and the conditions needed for new services to scale.
The conference will also consider priorities for developing shared digital infrastructure, and implementing the Energy Digitalisation Framework, including common architecture, standards, interoperability and assurance. Discussion will examine the development of Elexon's Smart Data Repository, intended to support wider access to energy and smart meter data, and RECCo's Consumer Consent Solution, which will enable consumers to manage and control access to their energy data. Delegates will consider what will be required for these arrangements to work effectively in practice, including clarity of responsibilities, coordination between delivery bodies, security and consumer confidence, and avoiding unnecessary barriers or duplication for established market participants and new providers.
Scheme design, framework & governance
The agenda will consider the scope and design of an energy Smart Data scheme, governance arrangements, and what is needed for effective delivery within the developing energy data framework.
Areas for discussion include:
- scheme design:
- next steps following the Government’s consultation on the Energy Smart Data Legislative framework and the DBIST’s Smart Data: multi-sector call for evidence
- scope for data, participants and phasing - roles of data holders, authorised third parties and delivery bodies - proportionality for suppliers, networks and smaller providers
- development of the Smart Data Repository and Consumer Consent Solution - access to energy and smart meter data, and transparency - arrangements for consumer consent management
- what evolving data sharing arrangements could mean for new consumer and business services, alongside implications for data quality, accountability and cost allocation
- statutory and regulatory framework:
- Smart Data powers under the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 - interaction with the Energy Act 2023, supply licence conditions and industry codes
- appropriate use of regulation and code-based arrangements
- governance:
- implementation of the Energy Digitalisation Framework - proposed digitalisation coordination function and Digitalisation Board
- domain responsibilities across NESO, Elexon and RECCo - transition from interim to enduring arrangements
- wider alignment:
- links where relevant with flexibility, settlement reform and other data-dependent market developments
- coordination with Smart Data 2035 and the wider development of Smart Data schemes
- accountability: oversight and enforcement - liability where data moves beyond the energy sector - respective roles of Ofgem and the Information Commission - routes to redress for consumers and businesses
Data access, shared infrastructure & interoperability
Further sessions will focus on the shared digital infrastructure being developed to support access to and use of energy data, and the standards and arrangements needed for it to work effectively across the sector.
Areas for discussion include:
- smart meter data access:
- outcome of the DESNZ-Ofgem scoping exercise - insights from Ofgem’s consultation on the Smart Data Repository: policy rationale and proposed governance framework
- development of the Elexon Smart Data Repository and access to aggregated data
- consent-based access following integration with the Consumer Consent Solution - roles of the Data Communications Company and the Smart Energy Code
- Data Sharing Infrastructure: NESO’s interim coordinator role - architectural reference framework - responsibility for maintaining key data services - cost allocation and recovery
- assurance requirements: common standards and interoperability - accreditation - proportionality for smaller innovators and new entrants - avoiding duplication across repositories and registers
- data quality:
- registration of distributed energy assets - network visibility of heat pumps, charge-points, batteries and solar
- implications for market-wide half-hourly settlement and local energy planning
- implications of Ofgem’s Transforming Connections Data consultation for data quality, interoperability, transparency and network planning
- analysis and application:
- data readiness for AI and advanced analytics in the energy system
- Independent Review of AI Deployment in Electricity Networks - opportunities, risks and enablers for AI use in grid planning and management
- research access through services such as the Smart Energy Data Service - implications of the forthcoming AI for Clean Energy Strategy
Consumer consent, protections & security
Delegates will assess priorities for consumer consent, protection and confidence as access to household energy data supports a wider range of services. Discussion will also consider cyber security and resilience, following publication in May 2026 of the Energy Sector Cyber Security Strategy and as data sharing arrangements involve a wider range of organisations.
Areas for discussion include:
- consent arrangements: Consumer Consent Solution design and delivery - granting, managing and revoking consent - consistency across suppliers and third parties
- transparency and control:
- information for consumers on who is accessing their data and for what purpose - treatment of existing consents and data shared under licence conditions or other lawful bases
- arrangements for consent management across industry and third-party services
- implications of Ofgem’s consultation on proposed changes to electricity and gas supply standard licence conditions, including the provision of objective information about low-carbon technologies during smart meter installations
- protections:
- assessing risks around profiling and use of data in pricing and service provision - anonymisation and data security
- preventing unfair or discriminatory outcomes - complaints handling and redress
- inclusion: customers without a working smart meter - vulnerable and digitally excluded households - affordability - accessibility and clarity of benefits for different consumer groups
- confidence: lessons from Open Banking and wider Smart Data schemes - implications of differences between banking and energy data sharing models
- security and resilience: embedding requirements into data sharing arrangements - implementation of the Energy Sector Cyber Security Strategy - supply chain and third-party risk as access widens
Innovation, competition, investment & market development
The agenda will also consider implications of an energy Smart Data scheme for competition, investment and the development and adoption of new services.
Areas for discussion include:
- market entry and competition:
- barriers for new entrants - accreditation and assurance requirements - implications for switching, tariff comparison and third-party intermediaries
- implications of the forthcoming requirements for smart‑contingent contracts to non‑domestic customers from September 2027
- new services: flexibility and demand management - EV charging - heat electrification and smart appliances - propositions for SMEs, social landlords and local authorities
- investment and commercial development:
- clarity and credibility of timelines - scaling Smart Data-enabled business models - conditions for attracting investment into digital energy products
- commercial viability of data-driven services - lessons from Open Banking and other data-enabled markets
- cross-sector interoperability:
- alignment with Smart Data schemes in financial services, transport, retail and property - potential interfaces between energy, water and transport data
- development of the Smart Data Guidebook
All delegates will be able to contribute to the output of the conference, which will be shared with parliamentary, ministerial, departmental and regulatory offices, and more widely. This includes the full proceedings and additional articles submitted by delegates. As well as key stakeholders, those already due to attend include officials from the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade; Department for Energy Security and Net Zero; Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; Government Legal Department; Government Office for Science; Ministry of Defence; National Audit Office; Office for Investment; Ofwat; Ofcom; Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology; Department for the Economy, NI; the Welsh Government; and The Scottish Government.
