A digital replica of Britain’s entire energy system has been awarded a grant of almost £150,000.

The so-called Virtual Energy System will work in parallel to the physical system, creating a digital environment to share real-time data and enable users to model and predict scenarios that will support the decarbonisation of the energy industry.

National Grid ESO unveiled the programme for the first time in November. 

The new funding will support the next phase of the project.

Jonathan Barcroft, Common Framework Workstream Lead at National Grid ESO, said: “This next phase of the Common Framework Project will enable us to explore key considerations for the creation of the Virtual Energy System, including themes such as cyber security, data quality, metadata, legal and regulatory issues and common attributes of digital twins.”

Simon Evans, Global Digital Energy Leader at Arup, said: “The Virtual Energy System is an important step towards connecting the energy system, which is critical for achieving net zero.

“This will offer new opportunities for innovation, providing new ways to collaborate and create new, more efficient services for consumers.”