3.69 The Government will work in partnership with regulators and industry to maintain the performance of the UK's energy system over time, while ensuring that it provides good value for money for users and taxpayers.
3.70 Specifically, the Government will aim to improve the UK's performance in a number of key areas:
• to maintain the security of supply of the electricity system, by ensuring that adequate reliable capacity is in place to meet peak demand;
• to ensure that the UK's market framework supports a diverse mix of gas sources (including the North Sea, storage and imports) that remains adequate to meet demand, and that the quality of service on gas networks improves after the gas mains replacement programme is completed;
to reduce the carbon intensity of the electricity system at least cost to consumers while reducing vulnerability to external commodity price and supply shocks, through a low carbon and diverse generation mix. The Government is committed to reducing UK greenhouse gas emissions by 80 per cent by 2050 (compared to 1990 levels). The Renewable Energy Directive also requires 15 per cent of all energy consumed in the UK to come from renewable sources by 2020;
• to put in place the building blocks for a smarter electricity grid that can connect and balance supply and demand in more efficient ways. This may involve an improved ability to export or import electricity, to store electricity produced by intermittent generation such as wind farms and to give customers greater ability to manage their demand using new technology such as smart meters; and
• to ensure that the energy system remains competitive with trading competitors and affordable to both households and businesses.