The UCL Energy Institute celebrates its second birthday

The UCL Energy Institute was launched two years ago this week, with the aim of accelerating the transition to a globally sustainable energy system through world-class energy research, education and policy support.

We have brought together a highly motivated multi-disciplinary core team of 80 staff and students into a recently refurbished building located within easy walking distance from St Pancras International rail station. This core team collaborates with staff across UCL including the departments of Chemical Engineering, Mathematics, Laws, Naval Architecture and Arts and Humanities; as well as collaborating with other academic institutions, industry, government departments and NGOs on energy problems. We have built up world leading teams in the areas of energy demand (particularly in buildings and shipping) and the modelling of whole energy systems on national and international scales.

Researchers at the Institute have won almost £9M worth of competitive research funding over the past two years and developed a Masters of Research and Doctoral programme with 30 students, a third of whom have funded scholarships from EPSRC. Many of our researchers have been acknowledged as world leading by EPSRC who have provided continuity funding to our contract staff with a Platform grant. Our staff and students have won prizes for their research publications and we have edited over 5 books including "Energy 2050".

Our researchers regularly collaborate on projects with international research groups and much of our research is undertaken in partnership with industry. We continue to develop our international collaboration network through work with EDF in France, the University of Wollongong in Australia and the International Energy Agency. We have worked closely with both industry and NGOs, in particular signing a Memorandum of Understanding with EDF, supporting a Global CleanTech 100 SME, PassivSystems, via a KTP and preparing a report on Marginal Abatement Cost (MAC) curves for Greenpeace. We regularly have visitors from around the world and several visiting appointments including a Royal Academy of engineering/CIBSE funded Visiting Professorship.

Our staff have worked very hard and are very committed to making sure our research does not just remain buried in academic journals but has real impact. Hardly a day goes by without a visitor to our office from a government department or our staff giving presentations to policy makers. UCL-Energy staff also formally sit on several key government committees including the Scientific Advisory Group of DECC and have provided advice on issues related to the Green Deal, Renewable Heat Incentive, Green Growth and 4th Carbon Budget.

We would like to thank everybody for the support they have given us over the last two years and look forward to the next two!