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Advancement of
Power Networks
This area focuses on accelerating and de-risking innovations that address the evolving characteristics of electricity generation and demand, driven by the net zero transition. Key priorities include enhancing system robustness and resilience, advancing digitalisation across the power networks sector, and enabling greater flexibility and participation from demand-side innovations. These efforts aim to ensure future networks are secure, adaptable, and capable of supporting a low-carbon energy landscape.
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Decarbonisation
of Transport
This focus area targets the acceleration and de-risking of innovative low-carbon transport solutions across land, marine, and aerospace sectors. Work includes the development of charging infrastructure and onboard technologies, with particular emphasis on electric drivetrains and power systems such as fuel cells, batteries, and power electronics, machines and drives (PEMD). A core objective is the integration of electric vehicles with the grid and the enhancement of energy system flexibility.
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Decarbonisation
of Heat
This area supports the development of innovative low-carbon heating solutions, from large-scale systems (such as zero-carbon CHP, district heating, and hydrogen for heating) to smaller-scale applications for domestic and small commercial use (including heat pumps, hydrogen boilers, and solar thermal systems). It also addresses the integration of these technologies into the broader energy system, with a focus on control, scheduling, and the influence of consumer behaviour on technology uptake and evolution.
Knowledge Exchange (KE) Forums
PNDC fosters a culture of knowledge sharing and collaborative project development to maximise value and learning for all partners. Aligned with the strategic focus areas, our Knowledge Exchange (KE) Forums provide a structured platform for engagement among PNDC, partners, academia, and wider stakeholders. These forums encourage open discussion on technical and innovation topics, promoting collaboration, supporting innovation, and helping to avoid duplication of effort and investment.
Strategic Advisory Groups
Although not formal decision-making bodies, PNDC’s advisory groups play an influential role in guiding strategic direction. Comprising recognised experts from industry, government, academia, and research institutions, these groups bring deep expertise aligned with each focus area. Their insights are instrumental in identifying and addressing key technological and policy challenges. In doing so, they help mitigate risks to the delivery of national strategies, ensuring that innovation is timely, relevant, and impactful.
The value of Strategic Advisory Groups to PNDC partners
The advisory groups influence and steer the priority areas of PNDC innovation activity that provide the most opportunity to add value to the energy and transport sectors and engage directly with policymakers in areas of strategic importance to support the net-zero transition.
Through exchanging ideas and challenging preconceptions, the advisory groups guide PNDC and its partners in how they should be developing capabilities to accelerate whole energy system decarbonisation and grow the resilience of the UK supply chain.
The advice and guidance from the groups also inform decision-making regarding the external economic, regulatory, and policy landscapes and their likely evolution and the external innovation landscape, including the identification of high-opportunity innovation needs and innovation delivery mechanisms.
The advisory groups signpost key milestones that impact the future direction of the sector and the development of the associated supply chain and highlight associated opportunities for PNDC and its partners to contribute to the maturing of the ecosystem.
Potential collaboration and partnership opportunities are identified alongside funding mechanisms that could be accessed to support innovation activity and support wider operational and capital investment.
The identification of evolving stakeholder and market requirements ensures alignment and complementarity with other innovation facilities in Scotland and the wider UK, where specific innovation topics and innovation programme opportunities are considered as new activities participation.