Indus 2.0 is exploring how industrial decarbonisation will reshape the future energy system. By enabling data sharing across energy networks, the project aims to build a complete, real-time picture of industrial energy use — something that has historically been fragmented or siloed. This richer insight will help identify tailored decarbonisation pathways for different sectors and support more coordinated, efficient energy network planning. Ultimately, Indus 2.0 is laying the groundwork for an energy system that can better support the transition to Net Zero while maintaining the productivity and competitiveness of UK industry.
What is the project about?
Indus 2.0 is tackling the challenge of industrial decarbonisation by addressing a critical blind spot: the uncertainty around how and when industrial energy users will transition to low-carbon alternatives. This uncertainty makes it difficult for electricity and gas networks to forecast future demand and plan investment confidently.
To overcome this, Indus 2.0 is developing a first-of-its-kind data-sharing framework between Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) and Gas Distribution Networks (GDNs). By identifying where industrial customers are located, analysing their energy use, and facilitating secure data sharing, the project will map out a range of potential decarbonisation pathways — spanning electricity, hydrogen, biomethane, and blended fuels.
These insights will help network operators anticipate how industrial users may shift their energy consumption or adopt behind-the-meter solutions like on-site generation and storage. Ultimately, Indus 2.0 will provide a clearer picture of future energy system needs and ensure that industrial users are empowered — not obstructed — on the road to Net Zero.
How we’re doing it
Indus 2.0 will deliver practical tools, strategies, and legal frameworks to support industrial decarbonisation and improve energy network forecasting. Through a combination of research, engagement, and testing, the project will enable electricity and gas networks to better anticipate industrial energy shifts and plan infrastructure accordingly. Key steps:
Identify Industrial Customers: Using data from UK Power Networks, SGN, and third-party sources, the project will map industrial energy users across a shared service area.
Establish Legal Frameworks: Robust data-sharing agreements will be drafted to ensure secure exchange of sensitive electricity and gas usage data between UK Power Networks, SGN, and NESO.
Build Data-Sharing Infrastructure: New systems will be implemented to enable real-time, secure data flows between energy networks, forming the foundation for coordinated planning.
Develop Decarbonisation Pathways: The project will design multiple decarbonisation strategies tailored to different industrial sectors, which will be integrated into long-term network demand forecasting.
Engage with Stakeholders: Industrial users and wider energy system actors will help shape and validate the assumptions behind each pathway. The project will also work with other DNOs and GDNs to explore how the solution can scale nationally.
By combining operational data with real-world insights, Indus 2.0 will help ensure that network infrastructure is ready to meet the evolving demands of industrial decarbonisation and support the UK’s path to Net Zero.
What makes it innovative
Indus 2.0 builds on the success of earlier phases of the Strategic Innovation Fund’s Indus project, which introduced the concept of Net Zero industrial hubs — collaborative clusters of industrial sites that streamline energy connections, reduce reinforcement costs, and deliver more efficient infrastructure planning.
Now, Indus 2.0 shifts focus to unlocking decarbonisation opportunities for a wider range of industrial and commercial users by connecting data across the energy system. The project will bring together datasets from electricity and gas networks to identify, locate, and categorise individual sites — particularly those outside established industrial clusters. This richer, shared view will enable networks to assess tailored decarbonisation pathways for each site, improving forecasting and informing infrastructure decisions.
The project’s innovation lies in its collaborative, data-driven approach — bridging the information gap between networks to enable a more strategic and scalable route to industrial decarbonisation. By breaking down silos and coordinating planning across the energy system, Indus 2.0 will help ensure smaller industrial users are not left behind in the transition to Net Zero.
What we’re learning
Indus 2.0 seeks to unlock critical insights into how industrial and commercial sites can decarbonise — and what that means for the future of the energy system. By accessing and combining datasets across electricity and gas networks, the project will identify, locate, and categorise industrial energy users with much greater precision. This enhanced understanding will allow networks to develop smarter, more coordinated infrastructure plans that reduce reinforcement needs, streamline connection processes, and lower costs for customers.
Through this work, Indus 2.0 aims to uncover:
The availability and quality of industrial customer data across DNOs, GDNs, and external sources
Practical methods for safely and effectively sharing data between electricity and gas networks
Techniques for integrating and cleansing datasets to create a unified picture of industrial energy use
Tools to model decarbonisation pathways and assess their impact on network capacity and planning
How a clearer view of industrial demand can inform connection strategies and future-proof network investment
Ultimately, the project will lay the foundation for a more joined-up, data-driven approach to industrial decarbonisation — ensuring no site is left behind in the race to Net Zero.
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