MEMBER NEWS: Storegga appoints Nicola Cocks as head of regulation and policy

February 17, 2022
MEMBER NEWS: Storegga appoints Nicola Cocks as head of regulation and policy

Courtesy of Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce.

Storegga, the independent UK decarbonisation early stage developer, has appointed Nicola Cocks into a new role as head of policy and regulation. Nicola joins from Thames Water, the UK’s largest water company, where she sat on the company’s executive team as regulation director. In the role, she was responsible for building and establishing an open and constructive relationship with the regulator, the customer challenge group, board and colleagues.

Prior to Thames Water, Nicola was a director in KPMG’s energy and natural resources practice. The role involved working as a strategic adviser to UK network companies on business planning and price control reviews, regulatory insight and advice and independent assurance reviews. Nicola joined KPMG from Ofgem, where she was Head of Projects & Programmes. She was notably the programme manager for the joint state of the market assessment with OFT and CMA.

Nick Cooper, chief executive of Storegga, said: “Nicola has done the hat trick of working at a regulator, a major consultancy, and in industry so we feel very lucky to have her expertise on our leadership team. Engaging positively with various government offices to establish supportive regulatory frameworks is vital to the country’s success in decarbonising our environment.

“Success is worth fighting for. We have huge potential to smash our net zero targets, and become a world leader in decarbonisation technologies and operations. We can create really exciting jobs that will support transitioning our economy away from traditional fossil fuels. We can deliver something that we can all be proud of for future generations.”

Nicola Cocks, head of policy and regulation at Storegga, added: “If we work with the government and regulators to share our experience and knowledge of what works and what doesn’t, we can achieve our net zero targets together. A crucial element will be demonstrating to society that the decarbonisation industrial revolution is both a force for good and value for money.

“Storegga has the backing of major international infrastructure investors and is led by clever and enthusiastic people, determined to make the UK a leader in carbon reduction and removal. I am really looking forward to helping them realise their decarbonisation ambitions. Storegga’s current projects have the potential capacity to remove huge amounts of carbon from the atmosphere. Being a part of the transition to a low carbon world is something my family and I can be really proud of.”

Read this story on the AGCC website here.

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Scottish Renewables

Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce has worked closely with AREG since its formation. The recent progress in the developments of offshore wind projects by Equinor and Vattenfall are as a result of the work of the group over many years. The north-east is known as the oil and gas capital of Europe. At the Chamber, we believe the region must evolve its position to being recognised as the energy capital. Whilst hydrocarbons will continue to be essential in driving our economy for years to come, the generation of renewable resources will play an increasingly important role in providing cost-effective power, innovative development and economic growth.

Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce

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All-Energy

Vattenfall has forged a strong working relationship with AREG through the development of the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre. AREG has worked tirelessly on behalf of the North East and it can take enormous credit for the growth of sustainable energy in the region and the path it has cleared for the region to capture further investment.

Vattenfall

Aberdeen City and Shire is emerging as a key location for renewables by successfully transferring its world-class oil and gas expertise into the sector and AREG has done much to advance this through a broad range of initiatives. It has acted as a catalyst in driving further investment in the local economy by engaging with companies, Government, public bodies and existing projects and we have been pleased to support their efforts. Scottish Enterprise will continue to engage with AREG as we increase Scotland’s use of renewable energy.

Scottish Enterprise