The UK’s defence sector is made up of a broad and varied mix of often large estates and sites, including manufacturing plants, ports, testing facilities and bases.
This makes implementing effective power resilience a complex task with no single solution. As with other critical industries such as healthcare, the defence sector’s importance means that resilience is not just important but is critical to it functioning correctly. With energy disruption presenting not only an operational threat but potentially a threat to national security, organisations within the defence sector have to ensure their power resilience strategy is effective and fit for purpose.
At the same time, the sector faces the same challenges as so many others; namely, the need to combat rising energy bills and to progress towards net zero. The Ministry of Defence has already committed to reaching net zero carbon by 2050, with many private suppliers in the sector having similar goals. Costs and sustainability remain key aspects of an energy strategy that must be carefully considered alongside power resilience.