Glossary
Technology that captures carbon dioxide from industrial processes and stores it underground, a growing area of energy project work.
Recent Trends
from Energy & Technology
Investment in AI infrastructure — data centres, chip fabrication, and cloud capacity — has become the dominant theme in tech, with major deals driven by the compute demands of large language models. In energy, the hydrogen economy is attracting serious capital, with governments offering production subsidies to make green hydrogen competitive. Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is moving from pilot to commercial scale, with the UK licensing its first transport and storage networks. Meanwhile, the convergence of energy and tech — smart grids, AI-optimised energy trading, and digital twins for infrastructure — is creating genuinely new categories of legal work.
SPV (Special Purpose Vehicle)
A legally separate entity created to isolate the financial risk of a specific project, so that the sponsor's other assets are not exposed if the project fails.
PPA (Power Purchase Agreement)
A long-term contract between an energy generator and a buyer, fixing the price and volume of electricity to be supplied — essential for project bankability.
Net Zero
The target of balancing greenhouse gas emissions produced with those removed from the atmosphere, legally binding in the UK by 2050.
Bankability
Whether a project's risk profile and contractual framework are acceptable to lenders for the purpose of providing project finance.
UK GDPR
The UK's own version of the EU General Data Protection Regulation, governing how organisations process personal data. It began as a straight copy but has genuinely diverged since the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 amended it.
RAB (Regulated Asset Base)
A funding model where investors earn a regulated return on capital deployed during construction, reducing risk and lowering the cost of finance for large infrastructure projects.
EPC Contract
An Engineering, Procurement, and Construction contract under which a single contractor takes responsibility for delivering a project to a fixed price, time, and specification.
Carbon Credit
A tradeable certificate representing the right to emit one tonne of carbon dioxide, used in compliance and voluntary carbon markets.