Launched in 2009, E.ON's Sustainable Energy Fund continues where SOURCE left off. The Sustainable Energy Fund takes aim to support community groups by providing the necessary information to enable them to make the right choices of measure to install. Whether it is greater insulation or a more technical micro generation solution. The fund also supports them financially, by offering grants of up to £20,000 for their project. The fund has supported a wide range of groups, from small community halls to larger charities and its reach has been from Cornwall to Northumberland.

Explaining what we're doing

Stakeholder engagement is an integral part of our development process. It's also an important part of supporting renewables projects through the planning consent process. We continued to deliver a thorough and comprehensive communications programme throughout 2009 that included:

• Public exhibitions - to inform and consult with local people around our development sites on the proposed schemes, and to tell them more about E.ON and the importance of renewable energy
• Newsletters- to keep local people and key stakeholders informed on the progress of the development. These have been developed in multiple languages to cater for a diverse range of people
• Site visits - these have proved to be valuable ways of engaging with stakeholders and overcoming some of the myths that exist around our operations. We undertook a number of visits for residents local to our development as well as MPs, councillors, planning officers and even the Japanese Wind Farm Association. We also supported an International Media trip
• Media days - these are held to build up relationships with the media
• Supplier days - giving potential suppliers the opportunity to find out about the construction of the project and how they might get involved
• Presentations - face to face engagement is helpful for building relationships with our important stakeholder groups. This has provided a great channel for two way communication and has improved others' understanding of what we do and how it affects them
• Investments in the community and events - we aim to be a good neighbour at all of our sites and become an integral part of the community. We always strive to demonstrate how we can bring benefits to the area, have made some investments in our community and have supported local events
• Supporting key trade industries - we're active members of RenewableUK (formerly the British Wind Energy Association) and Scottish Renewables. We've opened our Scroby Sands and Steven's Croft visitors centres for their wind week and opened up our wind farms to host planning seminars.

Community Funds

Around some of our operational and new build sites, we have set up Community Funds. The aim of these funds is to help the communities neighbouring our sites that are affected by their operation. We work with community network organisations such as Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE) who administer these funds on our behalf.

Energy Experience

We've invested over £1.3m in our flagship education programme the Energy Experience.   Developed with the support of educational specialists and Local Education Authorities, the web-based programme is aimed at students aged 5-16.   Whether they are starting out or finishing their schooling, energy is going to be a dominant theme in their lives.   They are part of a generation that will have to make key decisions, individually and collectively, that will affect them and the rest of the world.   The resource has the ambition of helping to create an energy literate generation, giving them the information they need to make informed choices.   Log onto www.eon-uk.com for more information.

Now into their seventh year, Central Networks' pioneering Customer Support Vehicles (CSVs) still provide valuable face-to-face support to distribution customers during prolonged power cuts. They offer a warm drink, a winter warmer pack, up to date information on the outage and a smile from a friendly face. In 2009, the CSVs were used 58 times, providing vital support at incidents that were affecting 4,595 customers.

In March 2009 Central Networks, our distribution business, became the first Distribution Network Operator (DNO) to establish a permanent Customer Panel. The panel represents a wide range of customers and key stakeholder groups, such as police, local authorities, the Major Energy Users Council, the Environment Agency, Nottingham Elders Forum, Consumer Focus and the Royal National Institute for Deaf people (RNID). It is chaired by our Managing Director, John Crackett.
The panel's purpose is to provide honest feedback on:
1. How well our initiatives and methods of addressing customer issues are doing
2. What current or emerging consumer concerns are affecting our customers
3. Whether our plans are appropriate
4. Support and liaison between Central Networks and our consumer groups

CARES is a national campaign co-ordinated by Business in the Community and supported by local public, private and voluntary sector partners. Funded by business, CARES forges links between voluntary organisations that need support, and companies that are keen to get involved in the community by engaging their employees in volunteering.
Business in the Community aims to inspire, engage, support and challenge companies on responsible business, working through four key areas:

• Marketplace
• Workplace
• Environment
• Community

E.ON are one of over 400 companies that support city-based and regional Cares partnerships in 32 locations across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Through our PRIDE survey we ask everyone formally on a quarterly basis how we're doing as an employer and whether they personally feel they can make a Changing Energy difference. Through colleague feedback we've worked hard to create an all-round culture of openness and respect. That's why over 2,500 colleagues regularly dial into a live conversation with the board to hear how we're performing as a business and get the chance to ask them any question they like. That's also why they can meet senior leaders face to face in our Energy Debates.

The development of carbon capture and storage in the UK (or any other country) presents a number of complex challenges which may involve technical, legal, social and economic issues. The Carbon Capture and Storage Association   provides   a platform for stakeholders to enter dialogue with Government in a co-ordinated way to establish the business climate conducive to enabling CCS to become a low carbon option for the UK.
E.ON UK is represented on the CCSA Board of Directors. Membership enables E.ON to contribute, in line with E.ON UK's strategy for low carbon and CCS, to development of the Board's strategy and direction. In addition, support is given to Board activities such as Health and Safety, and Regulatory position development, using E.ON UK expertise

We're members of key renewable trade associations, such as BWEA and SRF and participate in a number of groups such as the BEWA Economics and Markets Group and the AEP Renewable Energy Committee. We aim to play a leading role in driving consultation on major issues.

In engaging with the zero carbon agenda we have worked closely with the UK Green Building Council (UK GBC) as part of their Zero Carbon Task Group. We have also engaged closely with our industry peers to ensure consensus on the energy supply perspective.

We are a member of the Safety, Health and Environment committee of the Energy Network Association which is committed ensuring the UK's energy networks are the safest, most reliable, most efficient and sustainable in the world.

We're part of The National Joint Utilities Group, a UK industry association representing utilities on street works issues. The 38 companies deliver gas, electricity, water and telecommunications to both individual consumers and UK plc. The Group's vision is based on safety, avoiding damage to underground assets, and working in partnership with local authorities to minimise disruption and deliver consistent high quality, to maximise the use of sustainable methods and materials and for street works in the UK to be regarded as world class.

We are active members of COCAA, the Carbon Monoxide Consumer Awareness Alliance, which is an industry working group, including any fuel burning organisations and our aim is to make people better aware of the dangers of CO.

We have a working relationship with the Women's Royal Voluntary Service (WRVS) to provide assistance to as many vulnerable customers as possible in the event of a power cut.

At Grain, where we're building a new gas-fired power station, we work closely with Natural England, the Environment Agency and Medway Council to ensure that the site's wildlife is fully protected. For example, we have completed environmental impact assessments for two protected species - water voles and great crested newts.

Following a Carbon Trust Audit across seven sites, we've upgraded the building management system at our HQ in Coventry to enable the control of lighting, and the air conditioning times to fit more closely with working patterns.

To ensure that we continue to meet the diverse needs of our customers, we've worked closely with the RNIB to produce a bespoke training package for all frontline customer-facing colleagues, exploring the issues faced by blind and visually impaired customers when interacting with our distribution business, as well as offering communication advice.

Our partnership with English Heritage enable both parties to work together on a wide range of initiatives to better understand how the historic environment can inform the way we build for tomorrow, promote advice to customers on how to adapt their homes in the face of changing climate and make them energy efficient.

To ensure that we continue to identify as many customers as possible who could benefit from being included on our Priority Service Register, we've established a working partnership with Air Products, a regional oxygen distributor which provide oxygen equipment to over 95% of oxygen users in our region.

We’ve been working with Age Concern for 10 years to support our vulnerable customers through different initiatives such as EnergyRight our Age Concern Cold Weather payments.

Action for Children

Action for Children is a leading UK children's charity, supporting almost 156,000 of the most vulnerable children, young people and their families each year.  
Known as the UK's 'local' children's charity they have almost 420 projects in the heart of the community across England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland.   This presents an exciting opportunity as E.ON partner up with Action for Children in 2010 to test a variety of initiatives to see where real support and value could be added.

Age UK

Working in partnership with Age UK, EnergyRight is a project that has been developed to raise awareness of energy efficiency amongst older people, supporting them in adopting energy efficient practices and measures to help them keep warm and save money. Now in its fourth year, EnergyRight is inspired by E.ON's objectives around energy efficiency and in supporting vulnerable customers, and complements Age Concern's aim to increase the health, comfort and financial security of vulnerable older people.  
EnergyRight week is a dedicated week in October which builds on the momentum of the EnergyRight programme and focus the energies of the local Age Concerns taking part into a week of events; taking energy efficiency into the heart of communities.   The events can be quite wide ranging from Information and Advice sessions to making draft excluders- all strive to increase awareness of energy efficiency issues within the older community, and support those who are the most vulnerable and at risk from energy related issues.

E.ON UK is playing a leading role in shaping research and development into energy technologies.

ETI

The ETI is a partnership between the UK Government and leading companies - including E.ON - to develop low carbon energy technologies.
It has been set up to accelerate the innovation, development and commercial deployment of technologies - in which investment could reach £1 billion over ten years.
ETI funding comes from joint public-private investment. E.ON was one the first companies to pledge support.
As a partner with the ETI, E.ON   will contribute up to £5 million per year for 10 years, with the UK Government matching these investments to create a potential £1 billion investment fund for new energy technologies.

EIRI

The E.ON International Research Initiative (IRI) is an innovative step by an energy company to help universities and researchers accelerate solutions for the challenges we are facing in the energy industry. Established in 2007, it has so far committed to invest £18 million in new energy technology projects. This and future investments will enable the international research community to investigate topics with the most promise to deliver sustainable, economic and practical supplies of energy for future generations.
This investment underlines E.ON's commitment to trigger innovation and new ideas that will help change the production, transport, storage and use of energy. The aim is that the results will benefit society as a whole. Findings, while remaining the property of the researchers, will be made available to the public. E.ON will not claim any exclusive rights to the knowledge.

EPSRC PARTNERSHIP

The EPSRC is the main UK government agency for funding research and training in engineering and the physical sciences, investing more than £850 million a year in a broad range of subjects - from mathematics to materials science, and from information technology to structural engineering In 2007, E.ON UK and the EPSRC launched a £10 million fund for a research programme to look at the next generation of low carbon energy solutions.

EPRI

EPRI is an independent, not-for-profit centre for public interest energy and environmental research. It is based in the US.   EPRI is recognised as a world leader in creating technology and providing solutions to challenging scientific and technological solutions.
E.ON UK subscribes to certain areas of the research from EPRI. For example involvement in the CoalFleet for Tomorrow programme has enabled us to expand understanding of the construction and consenting of IGCC plant. We are also exchanging knowledge on the development of ultra supercritical coal-fired plant with the option of retrofitted carbon capture facilities.This is just one of the areas in which our membership of EPRI assist us to make informed decisions about future generation technologies.

APGTF

E.ON is a member of the Advanced Power Generation Technology Forum (APGTF). This provides a focus for the power generation sector in the UK on R&D activities involving fossil fuel, including biomass and waste, together with associated technologies including carbon sequestration.
The objectives of the APGTF are to direct attention in the UK on near-to-zero and zero emission technologies in the areas of fossil fuel, biomass and associated technologies. This ensures that there is a continuing review of UK Energy R&D initiatives and that informed contributions are made to new programmes.
The APGTF has produced definitive statements identifying key areas of coal-related RD&D.
E.ON is actively engaged with activities with the APGTF and sits on the forum to provide input alongside others involved.

UKERC Supervisory Board

The UK Energy Research Centre is the focal point for UK research on sustainable energy. It takes an independent, whole-systems approach, drawing on engineering, economics and the physical, environmental and social sciences.The Centre's role is to promote cohesion within the overall UK energy research effort.   It acts as a bridge between the UK energy research community and the wider world, including business, policymakers and the international energy research community, and is the centrepiece of the Research Councils' Energy Programme.
E.ON have a representative on the UKERC Supervisory Board .

Energy Research Partnership

The Energy Research Partnership (ERP) was established to enable the UK to become a world leader in the development of innovative new technologies. This high-level forum brings together key funders of energy research, development, demonstration and deployment (RDD&D) in Government, industry and academia, plus other interested bodies, to identify and work together towards shared goals.

The Partnership has been designed to give strategic direction to UK energy RDD&D, in the context of the Government’s Energy Policy and especially with regard to the aim of increasing national research and development expenditure.

Last   year, Central Networks,   our distribution business,   introduced an industry-leading initiative, producing a quarterly MP Newsletter called "Switched On". This gives us the opportunity to build some key relationships with MPs and importantly, prospective parliamentary candidates. They are now better informed about who we are, what we're doing and what's important to us. As the electricity distribution company for nearly 10 million people across central England, we're committed to keeping in touch with MP's and their constituents, to make sure they know who we are, what we do and how we can help when there's a problem.

We will continue our collaboration with external stakeholders specialising in sustainable supply chains to increase opportunities in this area for us to reduce waste and increase re-use, and recycling. We are involving Government- funded (DEFRA and BERR) national centres of excellence such as WRAP, NISP and Action Sustainability to maximise opportunities in this area. We're maintaining our leadership and in the supply chain area by role modelling to our suppliers and also learning from those who excel in this area.

We've been working with the Environment Agency to minimise the impact of our investments on the environment.

E.ON UK is a corporate member of Business in the Community (BitC) whose patron is HRH the Prince of Wales. The Mayday network was set up by BitC to unite businesses with a passion for tackling climate change. We've been actively giving our suppliers sustainability information, and inviting them to free 1 day workshops at our inaugural supplier conference. As a result, 17 of our key suppliers have now voluntarily signed up to the Mayday network, and pledged to publicly disclose their carbon footprint and future reduction plans.

We continue to collaborate with the social enterprise, Action Sustainability, over the past three years to explore more ways of becoming more sustainable and considering the social impact of our supply chain for the wider community through considerate purchasing. This includes our participation in Sustainable Solutions' 'meet the buyers' events which support supplier diversity and innovation.

In September 2009, we hosted our first ever supplier conference. 70 of our most strategic suppliers were invited to meet the E.ON UK Board, to gain greater insight into how they could support our plans for a lower carbon future. The event concluded with a number of Changing Energy awards being presented to some of our suppliers.