Alongside the Imperial College research that falls within our Policy and Innovation theme, Energy Futures Lab undertakes work in its own right in the area of policy. This work is led by Dr Aidan Rhodes and includes a regular series of Briefing Papers aimed at all stakeholders in the energy sector. This is a selection of the various ad-hoc reports and documents published by the institute addressing particular topics or calls-for-evidence.


  • The Role and Value of Hydrogen in Future Zero-Carbon Great Britain's Energy System

    Achieving the UK’s long-term climate targets will require holistic strategies for decarbonising electricity, transport and heat while maintaining energy security and minimising system costs. This analysis re-evaluates the value of hydrogen holistically by conducting a series of whole-system studies to provide fundamental and robust evidence about hydrogen’s role and system benefits under different energy system scenarios.

  • Whole Energy System Modelling for Heat Decarbonisation report

    The heat sector (heat in buildings and industrial processes) accounts for more than half of the UK's energy consumption and contributes to around a third of its total carbon emissions. This report presents the key results and the findings of analyses and studies focusing on understanding and quantifying the long-term cost drivers for decarbonising the heat sector. This modelling and analysis of heat decarbonisation scenarios was supported by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).

  • Enabling a transition to low carbon economies
    An examination of options for meeting the expected energy demand for 2050 on the assumption that economic growth will continue is necessary in order to plan infrastructure investments that will still be functioning in 2050.