Hydrogen Funding Policy

DESNZ  

The responsibilities for the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero for 2023 are as follows: 

• Delivering security of energy supply 
• Ensuring properly functioning energy markets 
• Encouraging greater energy efficiency 
• Seizing the opportunities of net zero to lead the world in new green industries 

For 2023, our priorities are: 

• Ensure security of energy supply this winter, next winter and in the longer-term – bringing down energy bills and reducing inflation. 
• Ensure the UK is on track to meet its legally binding Net Zero commitments and support economic growth by significantly speeding up delivery of network infrastructure and domestic energy production. 
• Improve the energy efficiency of UK homes, businesses and public sector buildings to meet the 15% demand reduction ambition. 
• Deliver current schemes to support energy consumers with their bills and develop options for long-term reform to improve how the electricity market works for families and businesses. 
• Seize the economic benefits of Net Zero, including the jobs and growth created through investment in new green industries. 
• Pass the Energy Bill to support the emerging CCUS and hydrogen sectors; to update the governance of the energy system; and to reduce the time taken to consent offshore wind. 

Our Inclusive Environment 

We are building an inclusive culture to make the Department a brilliant place to work where our people feel valued, have a voice and can be their authentic selves. We value difference and diversity, not only because we believe it is the right thing to do, but because it will help us be more innovative and make better decisions.  

We offer first-class flexible working benefits, excellent employee well-being support and a great pension. We are fortunate to have a range of excellent staff networks and are proud to be a Disability Confident Leader employer. We will support talented people from all backgrounds to build a career and thrive. 

We actively welcome applications from anyone who shares our commitment to inclusion. We will fully support candidates with a disability or long-term condition who require adjustments in our recruitment process. 

Find Out More 

We regularly run events where you can find out more about the department and tips for the application process. You can sign up for upcoming events here: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/departmentforenergysecurityandnetzero?  

You can also follow our LinkedIn Careers Page: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/desnz-careers/  

Low carbon hydrogen will be critical for the UK’s transition to net zero. As part of a deeply decarbonised, renewable energy system, low carbon hydrogen could be a versatile replacement for high-carbon fuels used today – helping to bring down emissions in vital UK industrial sectors and providing flexible energy for power, heat and transport.

In the Energy Security Strategy, we have set out an ambition to deliver 10GW of hydrogen production capacity by 2030. This will help put us on a pathway to Carbon Budget 6 and create a more resilient and affordable UK energy supply.

The Hydrogen Production Business Model aims to overcome the initially higher cost of low carbon hydrogen compared to high carbon counterfactual fuels. The proposed hydrogen levy will provide funding for the Hydrogen Production Business Model – which enables the scale up of the hydrogen economy.

These SEO policy roles will sit within the Analysis and Funding Strategy Team, a multidisciplinary policy and analytical team within the Hydrogen and Industrial Carbon Capture (HICC) Directorate. This is a great opportunity to join a fast-growing team responsible for delivering critical net zero policy and analysis for some of the most exciting technologies needed to decarbonise the economy.

We pride ourselves on having a friendly and encouraging work environment and are keen to hear from a diverse range of applicants.

We support team members to develop their careers.

Key responsibilities

The roles will involve a mix of policy, strategy, and delivery work. This will include:

• Development of policy positions and systems for the hydrogen levy and related schemes. This involves working with policy, analytical, and financial colleagues, external delivery partners, technical experts, and other government departments.

• Support the public consultation on the hydrogen levy and managing external stakeholder management.

• Support the development of regulations for the hydrogen levy, working with lawyers and managing the legislative passage of the secondary legislation.

• Providing advice to Ministers and senior officials, drafting submissions and briefing, and contributing to wider hydrogen strategy work and products.

These posts provide an opportunity to take the lead on developing new areas of policy, and gain experience across a range of work, including working directly on delivering a consultation and legislation.

Skills and experience

As a team we work flexibly and welcome those who have varied working practices. The skills and experiences that we hope to attract include:

• Excellent written and oral communication skills, with the ability to describe, explain and make the case for evidence-based policy decisions. The ability to communicate complex and technical issues clearly and concisely to colleagues, stakeholders and ministers is essential.

• The ability to pick up new and complex information and use strong analytical and numerical skills to understand the technical elements of the hydrogen levy work.

• Experience of policy design and development, and working on new and emerging areas.

• Strong delivery and organisational skills to lead the work, which will have to be progressed to a tight timetable.

• Excellent collaborative skills. You will be working closely with technical, financial, commercial, analytical and legal advisors both within and external to DESNZ.

Desirable criteria

• A knowledge of the energy system, in particular the gas network. 

• Experience of working on energy or decarbonisation policy.

• Experience working on consultations, legislation, or delivering a levy framework.

We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together
• Delivering at Pace

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero offers a competitive mix of benefits including:

• A culture of flexible working, such as job sharing, homeworking and compressed hours.
• Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme, with an average employer contribution of 27%.
• A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30.
• An extensive range of learning & professional development opportunities, which all staff are actively encouraged to pursue.
• Access to a range of retail, travel and lifestyle employee discounts.
• A hybrid office/home based working model where staff will spend a norm of 40-60% of their time in the office (minimum of 40%) over a month with flex dependent on balancing business and individual need.

Job contact :

• Name : William Ray
• Email : william.ray@energysecurity.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : desnzresourcing.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk