The House of Commons and the Committee on Climate Change are some of the institutions set to share their knowledge this April, in the newly launched Utility Week Live Keynote Conference programme, taking place from 21st to 23rd April 2015 (NEC Birmingham).
The ticketed, three-day Keynote Conference will take an “outside-in” approach, drawing on other sectors’ experience in managing key issues such as change, resilient infrastructure and customer trust. Speakers include Lord Deben, chairman of the UK’s independent Committee on Climate Change and Tim Yeo, MP and chair of the Energy and Climate Change select committee.
Senior utilities representatives will also deliver talks at the event, with chief executives of Western Power Distribution, Northern Gas Networks, UK Power Networks, Wessex Water, Southern Water and Electricity North West confirmed, together with regulators Ofgem and Ofwat.
Launching in 2015, Utility Week Live is the UK’s first (and only) event dedicated to the business, operational and technical needs of the UK’s water, electricity and gas utilities, from upstream, transmission and distribution through to domestic and non-domestic retail.
Amanda Barnes, publisher of Utility Week magazine and Faversham House chief executive, said: “With the long and well respected heritage of Utility Week magazine, a live event and conference is a natural extension to meet the needs of our growing readership. We are delighted to unveil the first wave of speakers for the new Keynote Conference, which will provide a strategic level programme tackling the big issues faced by C-level utility executives.”
Utility Week Live Keynote Conference
Curated by Utility Week and drawing on the theme “outside in”, the Utility Week Live Keynote Conference invites a range of sector specialists to share their experience, including retail businesses leading the field of customer services as well as cutting edge climate change and technology researchers.
A series of talks will highlight learning from some of the UK’s most influential brands. This includes Andrew McMillan, former head of customer service for John Lewis will share his experience and Professor Steve Cowley, director for Culham Centre for Fusion Energy will explore his vision for the future of energy and fusion.
Lord Deben, chairman of the UK’s independent Committee on Climate Change will share his insights into the utilities sector and its relationship with global warming. CEO of Southern Water Matthew Wright will also talk on managing extreme weather.
A series of panel debates will showcase the approaches leading brands are taking to tackle long-standing industry challenges. Speakers taking to the podium to debate the session ‘Utilities, politics and the media’, include Tim Yeo, Member of Parliament and chair of the Energy and Climate Change select committee, and Neil Dhot, director of communications for Water UK
The panel session ‘How I changed my business – transformational utilities leaders’ will share insights from Robert Symons, chief executive of Western Power Distribution, Ofwat chairman Jonson Cox and Mark Horsley, chief executive of Northern Gas Networks.
A panel will also explore the hunt for future know-how, in the session ‘Talent for the future – the skills gap in utilities, and how business can respond’. Speakers include Neil Roberts, chief executive of EU Skills, Basil Scarsella, chief executive of UK Power Networks, and Lynn Cooper, chief executive of the Institute of Water.
Other themes to be explored include the panel session ‘Beyond box ticking: regulation and customer service’, with speakers including Sarah Harrison, sustainable development lead for Ofgem, and Colin Skellett, chief executive of Wessex Water.
Finally, the session ‘Challenges of extreme weather and how best to manage it’ will include insights from Michelle Spillar, head of utilities at the Met Office and Steve Johnson, chief executive of Electricity North West.
Utility Week Live partners
Utility Week Live incorporating IWEX has already attracted Gold level sponsorship support from Infosys, experts in technology and innovation and PA Consulting, a global leader in consulting, technology and outsourcing solutions.
Show partners for Utility Week Live incorporating IWEX include British Water, CIWEM (The Chartered Institution for Water and Environmental Management), The Energy Innovation Centre, Energy UK, REA (Renewable Energy Association) and ENA (Energy Networks Association).
Another Faversham House event – Sustainability Live, a UK’s hub of energy and sustainability solutions for the UK business community – will be co-located with Utility Week Live incorporating IWEX. The event features NEMEX (The National Energy Managers Exhibition), ENERGY RECOVERY (The National Energy Recovery Exhibition) plus its own strategic, three-day Sustainability Live Conference. This co-location offers visitors numerous business networking opportunities all under one roof (all take place at the NEC Birmingham from 21st to 23rd April).
The Utility Week Live incorporating IWEX exhibition and technical seminars are free to attend, with paid tickets available shortly for the Keynote Conference.
