News

Keep up to date with TNEI’s latest news and opinion pieces

Can local energy balancing unlock stalled renewables? What we’re learning from GECCO

TNEI has been working with Regen, National Grid Electricity Distribution and Energy Local on the Geoprint for Energy Club Connections and Operations (GECCO) project, exploring whether local energy balancing, the coordination of local generation and demand within a defined area, could make better use of existing grid capacity, reduce pressure on the network, defer costly reinforcement and unlock new renewable connections sooner. A key learning so far is that local balancing is not just a theoretical concept. Previous schemes have shown it can reduce network pressure, enable both new generation and new demand to connect and create measurable financial value. However, not every local supply or market model is relevant for GECCO’s aims. The project has so far reviewed different emerging UK local energy models and grouped them into broad categories, concluding that these models play different roles depending on how directly they interact with the grid and whether they

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TNEI colleagues come together for global company away day

Last week, colleagues from across TNEI’s global offices came together in Lancaster for a two-day company away day focused on connection, collaboration and the future of the business. Hosted at Lancaster University, the event brought together teams from around the world for the Company Annual General Meeting (AGM), interactive workshops, a group environmental activity, and an evening celebration hosted by Team Africa, who this year is celebrating their 10th anniversary. The event opened with the Company AGM where the TNEI team was provided with an opportunity to reflect on progress, share updates and discuss the direction of the business. The session also saw some colleagues presented with long service acknowledgments celebrating a long career with TNEI – Johan Smith (10 years), Ewan Watson (10 years) and James Mackay (20 years) congratulations! Following the AGM, colleagues moved into a series of mixed-group workshop exercises designed to encourage collaboration and relationship-building across

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Updated wind turbine noise assessment guidelines released

On 19th June 2026 the UK Government published Assessment and Rating of Wind Turbine Noise (ARWTN) which should be used to assess operational wind farm noise in the UK going forward with immediate effect. The document supersedes ETSU-R-97 ‘The assessment and rating of noise from wind farms’ which has been used to assess wind farm noise in the UK since it was published in 1996. Why are the updated wind turbine noise assessment guidelines important? Operational noise can be a key constraint in the design of a wind farm, influencing the number and size of turbines that can be installed. Noise constraints can also impact operational sites, reducing the amount of energy that can be generated. Robust noise guidance is key to ensuring that any impacts on local residents are properly assessed at the consenting stage and that noise can be controlled via appropriate planning conditions once a site becomes

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TNEI Obtains Planning Permission for 33MW Onshore Windfarm in South Lanarkshire

TNEI recently supported Wilson Renewables IV LLP in securing Planning Permission for the 5-turbine 33 MW Hawkwood Wind Farm, located 6km southwest of Strathaven, South Lanarkshire. The project involved a wide range of services delivered by our team, including: Pre-application consultation with consultees and the local community Co-ordination and compilation of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), including authoring front- and back-end EIA Report chapters Technical assessments covering areas including noise and socio-economics, and authoring associated EIA Report chapters Preparation of the Planning Statement, Design and Access Statement, and Pre-Application Consultation Report Co-ordination and submission of the Planning Application Post-submission monitoring and liaison activities   We were pleased to see Planning Permission granted by South Lanarkshire Council on 12 May 2026, marking an important milestone for the project. Stuart Beattie, Director at Wilson Renewables comments:  “TNEI has played a pivotal role in securing planning consent for our Hawkwood wind farm. Their

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TNEI Working with Future Engineers in “Race to the Line” Challenge

This week TNEI’s Charlie, Rory and George were involved in The Learning Partnership’s Race to the Line challenge, an inspiring initiative designed to give students real-world exposure to engineering, problem-solving and teamwork.  The Race to the Line challenge brings together schools and industry partners to help students apply science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) learning in a practical and engaging way. Pupils are encouraged to think creatively, collaborate effectively and develop solutions that mirror the challenges faced by engineers in the real world.  Pupils were tasked with designing, building and racing their own cars. TNEI worked alongside students offering guidance and helping them explore how engineering principles are applied in practice.   The collaboration gave students exposure to:  Engineering problem-solving and critical thinking  Working to briefs, deadlines, and constraints  Team collaboration and communication  Insight into careers within engineering and the energy sector  TNEI’s Electricity Network Lead Charlie Thompson organised the day with St Paul’s school and the Learning Partnership: ‘We had a fantastic day designing, creating and racing high speed cars with the pupils at St Paul’s

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Adopting Common Information Model (CIM) and Common Grid Model Exchange Specification (CGMES) for GB Distribution Network Assessment

The first Common Information Model (CIM)-based Long-Term Development Statements (LTDS) models were published by Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) in Great Britain in November 2025. Here’s TNEI’s take on them, what that means, and what’s coming next. What is the Common Information Model (CIM)? Common Information Model (CIM) is an internationally recognised semantic data model for power systems, defined under International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 61970 and 61968. It provides a consistent way to represent network components, topology and parameters, and improving interoperability between software tools and reducing reliance on bespoke formats. The Common Grid Model Exchange Specification (CGMES) is a set of CIM profiles developed by ENTSO-E that constrain CIM for specific grid-modelling use cases, enabling models to be exchanged and re-used consistently across parties and platforms. This is the standard applied in the GB context. How is CIM being implemented for GB distribution networks? Two things appear to be driving

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