As 2024 draws to a close, we at Blake Clough Consulting reflect on an exciting and busy year!  We continue to grow and have great success in delivering quality work to our clients.  We are proud to have doubled in size during 2024 and have been successful in cultivating a highly motivated and high performing team. 

Expansion and Growth: London Office, Shared Space in Pakistan, and Team Development

In 2024 we established our new office in London, where we have already assembled a team of 11 highly skilled consultants. The London office has been a really successful move, attracting high quality power systems consultants to our business (many formerly from Imperial College, London). 

In addition to our London office, we are proud to have established an office in Pakistan, providing our remote team with a dedicated space to collaborate and work together more effectively. This step is an important milestone in supporting our growing global operations and fostering greater team cohesion. 

Over the year, we successfully expanded our team, increasing our headcount from 23 employees at the end of 2023 to 46 by the close of 2024. This growth, split between our UK and Middle East teams, has enabled us to deliver on an increasing number of high-profile projects and expand our skill set and capabilities in line with growing demand in the energy sector.

Recognising Excellence: Winning a Category at the Energy Awards London

One of the most rewarding moments of 2024 was our success at the prestigious Energy Awards London, where we won the award for “Third Party Intermediary of the Year – under 50 employees”. This recognition was a testament to the hard work and dedication of our entire team. The judges commended us for being “a young, ambitious, and energetic team who are very capable and technical, helping young people as graduates and bringing the best young minds together to create something special.” They also praised our approach for providing end-to-end support to clients, ensuring that all those we work with benefit from the Blake Clough Consulting experience.

As we look forward to 2025, we are excited to continue our growth and success, building on the strong foundation we’ve laid in 2024. Here’s to another year of excellence, collaboration, and innovation!

Innovation in Power Systems: New Scripts, Models, and GB Transmission Model

Throughout 2024, we continued to innovate in the power systems space, developing new scripts and tools to enhance our studies and curtailment analysis. This ongoing development has significantly improved our efficiency, allowing us to offer even more advanced solutions and services to our clients. A standout achievement was the creation of the GB transmission model, which we are excited to utilise for curtailment analysis and various other projects in 2025.

In addition, we recruited a Head of Innovation with a specific mandate to drive innovation projects in collaboration with network operators. We have several promising ideas and project scopes currently under development, and we are eager to secure these opportunities in 2025, further establishing our leadership in energy sector innovation.

Thought Leadership and Industry Engagement: Key Conferences and Events

2024 was also a year of increased thought leadership and industry engagement. Our experts took part in several high-profile conferences and events, sharing valuable insights with industry leaders, policymakers, and professionals. These interactions contributed to the ongoing dialogue on key energy topics and allowed us to build relationships with stakeholders across the sector. Some notable conference appearances included:

• All-Energy: Our experts presented on a panel discussing the challenges of grid connection, particularly focusing on floating offshore wind.
• PNZ Net Zero: We presented papers on curtailment analysis and supply chain challenges for offshore wind development, offering solutions for overcoming key hurdles in the industry.
• World Utility Congress: We showcased one of our exciting projects focused on a large islanded system that integrates hydrogen and renewable generation, highlighting our innovative approach to energy system design.
• Global Offshore Wind Transmission: We discussed offshore wind grid connections, shedding light on the work done by NGESO on the Holistic Network Design (HND) and its potential to address key transmission challenges.
• Solar & Storage: This year marked our first time exhibiting at Solar & Storage, where we had a fantastic time engaging with attendees and showcasing our expertise. We look forward to more exhibitions in 2025!

Our participation in these events not only allowed us to contribute to important industry discussions but also provided us with valuable opportunities to engage with clients, partners, and industry contacts.

Giving Back: Supporting Charities and Community Initiatives

At Blake Clough Consulting, we believe in making a positive contribution to the wider communities and society.  Charities that we supported in 2024 include the following:

• The Welcome Centre: A local charity that supports individuals and families facing hardship.
• The Kirkwood: A hospice providing care and support for those living with life-limiting conditions.
• Paddock Community Trust: An initiative working to strengthen community cohesion and provide support for vulnerable individuals.
• Charlie Miller FA: A charitable foundation dedicated to supporting young people in football and education.
• Slaithwaite Scout Group: A youth organisation that promotes community spirit and personal development.
• Crisis UK:  A charity that supports people experiencing homelessness in the UK.

Academic Engagement: Guest Lectures and Knowledge Sharing

In 2024, we expanded our engagement with the academic community, recognising the importance of sharing our expertise with the next generation of engineers, energy professionals, and academics. Our consultants were invited to deliver guest lectures at several prestigious universities, including:

• Imperial College London
• University of Manchester
• University of Leeds
• University of Sheffield
• University of Huddersfield

These guest lectures provided a fantastic opportunity to engage with students, sharing insights from our industry experience while inspiring the future of the energy sector. We believe this engagement fosters strong connections between academia and industry, ensuring that students are equipped with the knowledge and perspective needed to succeed in the evolving energy landscape.

Strengthening Industry Relationships: Cigré Membership and Steering Committee Participation

Our involvement in the global community of energy professionals continued to grow in 2024 with a significant increase in our participation in Cigré, the international organisation focused on power systems. As part of our ongoing commitment to shaping the future of the energy sector, we became members of:

• Cigré Steering Committee: We contributed our expertise to help steer the direction of Cigré’s activities and initiatives, further solidifying our position as thought leaders in the field.
• Sponsorship and NGN Membership: We expanded our network by sponsoring key events and joining the National Grid Networks (NGN), strengthening our connections with key industry players.

We are excited about the ongoing collaboration with Cigré and look forward to contributing to its future initiatives.

Looking Ahead to 2025

As we reflect on a successful and eventful 2024, we look forward to even greater achievements in 2025. A key area of focus has been the growth and development of our exceptional team, which has played a critical role in our success. In particular, we have invested in the training and development of our graduate consultants, including transitioning graduates from disciplines such as Physics and Chemical Engineering into Power Systems. We are also grateful for the support from the University of Manchester, which enabled 9 of our staff to participate in the Power Systems module of their Distance Learning MSc program.

Throughout the year, we have cultivated an engaged and motivated team through team events, conferences, internal training, and other activities – an investment that has proven vital to our continued success.

We are very grateful for the support from our clients, partners, and team, and we look forward to another exciting year of growth and achievement in 2025. We look forward to the challenges and opportunities ahead in the electricity networks sector!