Keith Bell

Keith Bell is a Professor in the Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering at the University of Strathclyde, where he holds the ScottishPower Chair in Smart Grids. He joined the university in 2005 and has held several leadership roles, including co-Director of the UK Energy Research Centre (2014–2019) and Scientific Director of the Electrical Infrastructure Research Hub since 2018. He is a member of the UK Committee on Climate Change and actively collaborates with industry and government on energy systems research.

His research focuses on power system planning and operation, smart grids, energy economics, markets and regulation, energy policy, and the integration of renewable energy. He employs statistical methods and intelligent systems to manage risk in power systems and supports the transition to a low-carbon future. His work contributes to UN Sustainable Development Goals related to affordable and clean energy and industry innovation.

His recent publications examine battery trading impacts on grid congestion, locational pricing reforms, transmission capacity effects on wind curtailment, workforce challenges in decarbonisation, and strategies for managing extreme weather impacts on electricity networks. These works reflect a strong emphasis on system resilience, market design, and policy implications for net-zero transitions.

• Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (2020)
• CIGRE Technical Committee Award (2010)

Keith Bell supervises undergraduate, MSc, and doctoral students within the Centres for Doctoral Training on Wind Energy Systems and Future Networks. He has led and contributed to numerous research projects funded by EPSRC, industry partners like Northern Powergrid, and international collaborations including the NSF Global Centres. His advisory roles include the Scottish Government, Ofgem, and the UK Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. He is also the Strathclyde representative on the IET Power Academy Executive, promoting power engineering careers.

He is a Chartered Engineer and active in professional societies, serving on the Executive Board of the Power Systems Computation Conference and the Executive Committee of the IET Power Academy. He has participated in major events including COP26 and the Joint UK-China Expert Symposium on Sustainable Development and Decarbonisation.