Summary
Director, UK Energy Research Centre
Director, Centre for Energy Policy and Technology
Policy Director, Energy Futures Lab
Convenor of the Economics and Policy Module, MSc Sustainable Energy Futures
Thesis Term Director, MSc Environmental Technology
Research Impacts:
High impact output. Highly cited in departmental white papers, parliamentary select committee reports and non-departmental policy reports. Numerous high profile inputs to policy and direct interaction with senior policymakers and Ministers up to Secretary of State level.
Research Interests:
Energy policy specialist, with a cross disciplinary background in economics, engineering, system modelling and scenarios. Strong interest in technology and innovation. Track record in evidence based policy, contributions to policy developments, parliamentary committees, mainstream and popular media. Invited speaker at numerous industry, policy and academic conferences, meetings and workshops.
Short Biog:
The purpose of economic and policy research is to inform and impact policy developments. Just as engineering R&D may be measured in terms of patents or improvements to products, so policy research may be measured through improvements to policy and policy thinking.
Examples of input into recent policy developments are cited here:
Member of Academic Advisory Panel, Ofgem (2018 to date)
Advisory Group Chair, Committee on Climate change (2015, 2016)
Commissioner, Commission on Scotland's Energy Future (2013)
Specialist Advisor, Energy and Climate Change Select Committee reports on the Energy White Paper and Energy Bill (2011 and 2012).
Specialist Advisor to the House of Lords European Union Select Committee; feasibility of the EU 2020 targets for renewable energy (2008)
Policy reports/white papers citing my reports/papers include:
2019, Committee on Climate Change publishes a landmark report ‘Net Zero – The UK’s contribution to stopping global warming’. This report cites four of my outputs and publishes one of them alongside the main report as supporting analysis. ‘Bioenergy with carbon capture and storage, and direct air carbon capture and storage: Examining the evidence on deployment potential and costs in the UK’, is published alongside the report as well as featuring in the discussion of negative emissions technologies in the main report.
The Committee also refers to three of my other reports: ‘Accelerating innovation towards net zero emissions’, ‘UKERC response to the Cost of Energy Review’, and ‘Is EMR working? Are Britain’s electricity market arrangements fit for purpose or broken?’
2018 the National Audit Office report ‘Rolling out smart meters’ cites findings from (On demand: Can demand response live up to expectations in managing electricity systems?’ Energy Research & Social Science).
2018 Committee on Climate Change Progress Report to Parliament features findings from two of my reports in a two page box on electricity market design (Is EMR working? Are Britain’s electricity market arrangements fit for purpose or broken?) and UKERC response to the cost of energy review
During 2017/8 two reports are commissioned by BEIS (International Comparisons of Heating, Cooling and Heat Decarbonisation Policies) and (Realising the potential of demand-side response to 2025). These reports informed the clean growth strategy
2017 Working paper from the (Best practice in heat decarbonisation policy project) is published on the Committee on Climate Change website as supporting documentation to the Committee’s ‘Next Steps for UK Heat Policy’ report. The research also features in a prominent box-out in the main report
2016 (Innovation timelines from invention to maturity report) features in the National Infrastructure Commission’s report ‘The impact of technological change on future infrastructure supply and demand’
2016 Findings from the (Innovation timelines from invention to maturity report) submitted to the Energy and Climate Change Committee Energy revolution inquiry
2016 Findings from the (Innovation timelines from invention to maturity report) presented to the Energy and Climate Change Committee secretariat and Parliamentary Library services (the POST team)
2016 Findings from the (Innovation timelines from invention to maturity report) presented by DECC at a No 10 workshop exploring the implications for policy
2015 Evidence to the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee. Drawing upon: (Investment Decisions, The costs and impacts of intermittency, Great expectations: the cost of offshore wind in UK waters, Presenting the Future: An assessment of future costs estimation methodologies in the electricity generation sector)
2014 Appointed Chair of the Committee on Climate Change’s two steering groups overseeing work on cost reduction potential in the offshore power and CCS sectors. Drawing upon: (Great expectations: the cost of offshore wind in UK waters, Presenting the Future: An assessment of future costs estimation methodologies in the electricity generation sector)
Member of the Academic Advisory Committee to the Dept of Energy and Climate Change Energy Market Reform process (2012).
Committee on Climate Change report on bioenergy, 2012
Committee on Climate Change 1st progress report, 2009
BERR White Paper on Nuclear Power, 2008
Select Committee on Innovation, Universities, Science and Skills report 'renewable electricity generation technologies' 2008
Committee on Climate Change report 'building a low carbon economy', 2008
Contributed to the Committee on Environmental Markets and Economic Performance (CEMEP, 2007)
Contributed to the Stern Review's analysis of the cost of mitigation led by Prof Dennis Anderson OBE (2006)
Undertook analysis for the 2003 DTI Renewables Innovation Review
Contributed to scenario modelling for the 2003 Energy White Paper
Co-author of the Cabinet Office's 2002 Energy Review
Appointments
Director, UK Energy Research Centre (2020)
Reader, Centre for Environmental Policy and Director, Centre for Energy Policy and Technology (ICEPT). (2014)
2010 - 2013 Senior Lecturer, Centre for Energy Policy and Technology
2006 - 2010 Lecturer, Centre for Energy Policy and Technology (ICEPT).
2003 to 2006: Research Fellow, Environmental Policy and Management Group and Centre for Energy Policy and Technology,
1998 to 2003: Research Associate, Environmental Policy and Management Group and Centre for Energy Policy and Technology
2001: UK Government Cabinet Office, Energy Review team and Resource Productivity team, Cabinet Office
Recent favourite publications:
Selected Publications
Journal Articles
Parrish B, Heptonstall P, Gross R, et al., 2020, A systematic review of motivations, enablers and barriers for consumer engagement with residential demand response, Energy Policy, Vol:138, ISSN:0301-4215, Pages:1-11
Parrish B, Gross R, Heptonstall P, 2019, On demand: Can demand response live up to expectations in managing electricity systems?, Energy Research and Social Science, Vol:51, ISSN:2214-6296, Pages:107-118
Gross R, Hanna R, 2019, Path dependency in provision of domestic heating, Nature Energy, Vol:4, ISSN:2058-7546, Pages:358-364
Gross R, Hanna RF, Gambhir A, et al., 2018, How long does innovation and commercialisation in the energy sectors take? Historical case studies of the timescale from invention to widespread commercialisation in energy supply and end use technology, Energy Policy, Vol:123, ISSN:0301-4215, Pages:685-699
Armstrong RC, Wolfram C, de Jong KP, et al., 2016, The frontiers of energy, Nature Energy, Vol:1, ISSN:2058-7546
Blyth W, McCarthy R, Gross R, 2015, Financing the UK power sector: Is the money available?, Energy Policy, Vol:87, ISSN:0301-4215, Pages:607-622
Watson J, Gross R, Ketsopoulou I, et al., 2015, The impact of uncertainties on the UK's medium-term climate change targets, Energy Policy, Vol:87, ISSN:0301-4215, Pages:685-695
Speirs J, Contestabile M, Houari Y, et al., 2014, The future of lithium availability for electric vehicle batteries, Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews, Vol:35, ISSN:1364-0321, Pages:183-193
Slade R, Bauen A, Gross R, 2014, Global bioenergy resources, Nature Climate Change, Vol:4, ISSN:1758-678X, Pages:99-105
Boot-Handford ME, Abanades JC, Anthony EJ, et al., 2014, Carbon capture and storage update, Energy & Environmental Science, Vol:7, ISSN:1754-5692, Pages:130-189
Harris G, Heptonstall P, Gross R, et al., 2013, Cost estimates for nuclear power in the UK, Energy Policy, Vol:62, Pages:431-442
Candelise C, Winskel M, Gross R, 2013, The dynamics of solar PV costs and prices as a challenge for technology forecasting, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Vol:26, Pages:96-107
Hughes N, Strachan N, Gross R, 2013, The structure of uncertainty in future low carbon pathways, Energy Policy, Vol:52, ISSN:0301-4215, Pages:45-54
Chignell S, Gross RJK, 2013, Not locked-in? The overlooked impact of new gas-fired generation investment on long-term decarbonisation in the UK, Energy Policy, Vol:52, ISSN:0301-4215, Pages:699-705
Candelise C, Winskel M, Gross R, 2012, Implications for CdTe and CIGS technologies production costs of indium and tellurium scarcity, Progress in Photovoltaics: Research and Applications, Vol:20, Pages:816-831
Heptonstall P, Gross R, Greenacre P, et al., 2012, The cost of offshore wind: Understanding the past and projecting the future, Energy Policy, Vol:41, Pages:815-821
Candelise C, Speirs J, Gross R, 2011, Materials availability for thin film (TF) PV technologies development: a real concern?, Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews, Vol:15, ISSN:1364-0321, Pages:4972-4981
Slade R, Bauen A, Gross R, 2011, Estimating bio-energy resource potentials to 2050: Lessons from the UK experience, Energy & Environmental Science, Pages:2645-2657
Gross R, Blyth W, Heptonstall P, 2010, Risks, revenues and investment in electricity generation: Why policy needs to look beyond costs, Energy Economics, Vol:32, Pages:796-804
Candelise C, Gross RJ, Leach M, 2010, Conditions for photovoltaics deployment in the UK: the role of policy and technical developments, Journal of Power and Energy, Vol:224, Pages:153-166
Skea J, Anderson D, Green T, et al., 2008, Intermittent renewable generation and maintaining power system reliability, IET Generation Transmission & Distribution, Vol:2, ISSN:1751-8687, Pages:82-89