Energy Act 2023

Heat network authorisations

14 (1) The regulations may make provision about the conditions to be included in heat network authorisations.

(2) The regulations may, in particular—

(a) provide for the Regulator to determine and publish conditions to be included in each heat network authorisation or in each heat network authorisation of a particular description;

(b) provide for the Secretary of State or, in relation to Northern Ireland, the Department to determine and publish conditions to be included in each heat network authorisation or in each heat network authorisation of a particular description;

(c) provide for consultation on, and publication of, the conditions proposed to be so determined;

(d) make provision about the inclusion in a heat network authorisation of conditions that are special to that authorisation;

(e) make provision about including conditions that meet objectives or other criteria specified in the regulations.

(3) The regulations may, in particular, provide for conditions to be included in a heat network authorisation requiring the person who holds the authorisation—

(a) to comply with the provisions of a particular designated document;

(b) to enter into governance arrangements with the person who is from time to time the licensed code manager for that designated document and to comply with those arrangements;

(c) to provide funding for the person who is from time to time the licensed code manager for that designated document.

(4) The regulations may, in particular, provide for the following sorts of conditions to be included in a heat network authorisation—

(a) conditions about the terms on which premises are connected to a relevant heat network (whether for the purpose of supplying heating, cooling or hot water to premises, or supplying thermal energy to a relevant heat network);

(b) conditions about installing and maintaining equipment for measuring, displaying, recording and regulating consumption of heating, cooling and hot water supplied by means of relevant heat networks;

(c) conditions about—

(i) the charges payable by heat network consumers or a description of heat network consumers specified in the regulations,

(ii) the billing of heat network consumers;

(iii) service standards, or

(iv) the communication of information about the heat network, the services provided or the terms on which the services are provided;

(d) conditions relating to price regulation (including by means of regulation of charges or profits);

(e) conditions about complying with technical standards (including, in relation to England and Wales and Scotland, technical standards for which provision is made in a designated document);

(f) conditions about ensuring the continuity of the supply of heating, cooling and hot water to heat network consumers;

(g) conditions about limiting emissions of targeted greenhouse gases in relation to relevant heat networks in England or Northern Ireland;

(h) conditions about providing information to the Regulator;

(i) conditions about the payment of fees to the Regulator, including conditions about the payment of fees—

(i) in connection with the conferring of an authorisation;

(ii) while an authorisation continues to be in force in relation to a person;

(j) conditions about making payments to the Regulator of sums relating to the costs of the Regulator under regulations made by virtue of paragraph 46(2).

(5) Conditions of the sort referred to in sub-paragraph (4)(c)(i) may, in particular—

(a) provide for charges imposed on heat network consumers to be subject to a price cap;

(b) require a person who holds a heat network authorisation not to impose on heat network consumers charges that are disproportionate (see paragraph 42).

(6) Conditions of the sort referred to in sub-paragraph (4)(c)(ii) may, in particular—

(a) impose requirements about the bills given to heat network consumers (including requirements about their frequency, accuracy and the use of estimates);

(b) impose requirements about the information and explanatory material to be provided to heat network consumers;

(c) make provision about the charges that may be made in respect of the costs of providing bills and such information and explanatory material.

(7) The regulations may, in particular, provide for conditions to be included in a heat network authorisation that—

(a) in relation to England and Wales or Scotland, impose on the person who holds the authorisation a requirement of a kind that may be imposed under section 7(3) of the Electricity Act 1989 on the holder of a licence under section 6(1) of that Act;

(b) in relation to Northern Ireland, impose on the person who holds the authorisation a requirement of a kind that may be imposed under Article 11(3) of the Electricity (Northern Ireland) Order 1992 (S.I. 1992/231 (N.I. 1)) on the holder of a licence under Article 10(1) of that Order.