Lawrence Slade, CEO of Energy UK, has urged the government to ensure Brexit doesn’t damage the nation’s energy systems.

He has suggested a lack of clarity around what the future energy framework of the country could look like has already started to impact the energy sector because energy companies are unable to plan adequately in advance.

Mr Slade said the Emissions Trading System (ETS) is the most efficient way to decarbonise but as it is undecided as to what carbon pricing mechanism the UK will be in, the exposure to carbon costs for that period is undefined, causing “deep uncertainty across the market”.

He added the UK should stay closely aligned with the rules of the Internal Energy Market (IEM) to guarantee energy trading can remain as efficient and affordable as it is currently, as well as optimise the allocation of capacity across borders and help keep supply and demand stable.

The CEO also suggested the EU Clean Energy Package gives the UK a stable policy framework to operate in and claimed there “is no obvious benefit to consumers or industry from divergence”.