MCC delivered a comprehensive and collaborative review of UKEF’s product development approach, incorporating both quantitative benchmarking and qualitative insights from a wide network of international financial institutions. Our contributions included:

Strategic Design and Stakeholder Engagement

Designed a robust benchmarking questionnaire in collaboration with UKEF’s board and senior stakeholders, covering areas such as:

• Digital integration
• Customer centricity
• Governance and approval flows
• Cost-benefit analysis
• Innovation and agility in product development​

Comparative Analysis and Key Findings

Found UKEF’s governance to be in line with its peers, particularly in:

• Risk management
• Separate sign-off procedures
• Following formal processes for approval and modification​

Identified areas with potential for improvement, including:

• Customer engagement and feedback loops
• Use of digital tools and automation
• Application of structured product development frameworks like Agile or BAH models​​

Highlighted best practices from comparators, such as:

• Annual customer ideation forums (BPIFrance)
• Digitalisation of processes (SACE S.p.A.)
• Agile sprints for product innovation (EDC and NatWest)​
• Deliverables and Recommendations

Deliverables and Recommendations

Delivered a formal benchmarking report summarising findings and strategic recommendations for the UKEF Board, Internal Audit team, and Product Directors.

Recommended that UKEF:

• Strengthen digital integration during early product design stages
• Capture and apply structured customer feedback more effectively
• Consider piloting and iterative design models where appropriate
• Align internal review mechanisms with academic models such as Stage-Gate or BAH frameworks​

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MCC played a pivotal role in reviewing, analyzing, and synthesizing the consultation responses, delivering:

1. Thematic and Quantitative Analysis of Stakeholder Responses

• Processed and categorized thousands of responses, identifying recurring themes and stakeholder concerns.
• Analyzed sentiment and trends, determining whether responses were urging action, supportive with reservations, or providing advice.
• Extracted insights from key questions, including:
  • Environmental mitigation and compensation strategies.
  • Planning, consent, and licensing considerations.
  • Grid coordination and offshore wind network design.
  • Impacts on aviation, shipping, and other seabed users.

2. Expert Policy Engagement and Recommendations

• Led expert discussions with DESNZ to interpret consultation findings and assess policy implications.
• Mapped out stakeholder positions on controversial issues, such as:
  • The balance between offshore wind expansion and environmental protection.
  • The role of multi-purpose interconnectors (MPIs) and grid coordination.
  • The impact of aviation radar interference and maritime navigation.
• Provided strategic policy recommendations, ensuring that DESNZ’s approach aligned with net-zero targets, energy security goals, and regulatory best practices.

3. Final Government Consultation Report

• Authored a structured, data-driven report summarizing the consultation results.
• Highlighted key takeaways, including stakeholder sentiment distribution and areas requiring further policy refinement.
• Outlined government response options, helping DESNZ refine the Offshore Wind NPS (EN-3) for future implementation.

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MCC played a lead role in managing the consultation response process, delivering:

1. Project Management & Stakeholder Coordination

• Developed and managed all project collateral, including project plans, timelines, methodology documentation, and budget schedules.
• Led communication with DESNZ, providing weekly progress reports and acting as the central touchpoint for project updates.
• Resourced and coordinated the MCC project team, ensuring efficient workflow and division of tasks.

2. Data Processing & Quality Assurance

• Processed and reviewed thousands of responses submitted via Citizen Space and email.
• Conducted extensive data cleansing, removing duplicates, correcting formatting errors, and ensuring all submissions were properly recorded.
• Developed a master data table to consolidate stakeholder responses into a structured and searchable format.

3. Advanced Thematic & Quantitative Analysis

• Performed thematic analysis to categorize responses into key policy areas, assessing levels of support and areas of concern.
• Conducted quantitative analysis for closed questions, measuring statistical trends across respondent groups.
• Utilized Python-based data extraction techniques to streamline the analysis process and extract insights from text, PDF, and Word submissions.

4. Expert Policy Evaluation & Government Engagement

• Led discussions with DESNZ policy teams, providing in-depth insights on stakeholder positions and potential policy adjustments.
• Mapped out key areas of regulatory alignment and divergence, highlighting stakeholder concerns on net-zero commitments, energy security, and infrastructure development.
• Provided strategic recommendations on balancing economic, environmental, and energy priorities within the NPS updates.

5. Final Report & Government Response Preparation

• Authored the final consultation report, presenting a structured, data-driven summary of public and industry feedback.
• Developed government response templates, ensuring DESNZ could communicate policy decisions effectively.
• Proofread and formatted final NPS documents.

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MCC played a critical role in leading the consultation analysis, delivering:

1. Comprehensive Data Processing & Review

• Processed 55,000+ responses, including standardized campaign submissions and unique stakeholder inputs.
• Used data extraction techniques, including Python-based processing, to organize and categorize responses efficiently.
• Reviewed evidence cited in responses, ensuring that all claims were cross-checked with reliable sources.

2. Thematic & Quantitative Analysis

• Conducted thematic analysis to identify major areas of support and opposition across key questions.
• Summarized closed-question responses, highlighting the percentage of respondents supporting different checkpoint tests.
• Analyzed stakeholder perspectives on the Paris Agreement, energy security, investment risks, emissions benchmarks, and economic impact.

3. Policy Insights & Reporting

• Authored the final government consultation report, providing structured summaries of stakeholder positions.
• Outlined key areas where industry and public perspectives aligned or conflicted, allowing DESNZ to refine its policy approach.
• Provided recommendations on policy trade-offs, balancing climate concerns, energy security, and economic considerations.

4. Addressing Key Consultation Themes

Through our analysis, we identified key recurring themes in responses, including:

• Climate concerns: Many respondents cited the Paris Agreement, Climate Pact, and Net Zero commitments, arguing against further licensing.
• Energy security arguments: Some respondents supported continued licensing, emphasizing domestic production over reliance on imports.
• Checkpoint test criteria: Varied opinions emerged on how licensing decisions should be assessed, with debates on Scope 3 emissions, international benchmarking, and sector progress in energy transition technologies.

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MCC played a pivotal role in helping NATS and the CAA strengthen their financial models, delivering:

1. Comprehensive Model Review for NATS
   • Conducted an in-depth analysis of the traffic-risk-sharing mechanism and the model’s response to COVID-19-related traffic declines.
   • Identified 382 issues for NATS to investigate, highlighting areas where calculations and methodologies needed improvement.
   • Recommended new methods and updated data sources to ensure more accurate forecasting and decision-making.
2. Board-Level Analysis and Recommendations
   • Reviewed key board presentations and conclusions to verify that they were supported by reliable model calculations.
   • Suggested methodology updates and refinements to improve the financial model’s credibility and accuracy.
3. Support for CAA’s NR23 Price Control Model
   • Assisted the Civil Aviation Authority in designing, reviewing, and modifying a new model for NATS’ price control process.
   • Addressed financial model deficiencies that had delayed NR23 by six months, helping to bring the process back on track.
4. Best Practice Implementation
   • Recommended model updates using industry best practices, ensuring future reliability and transparency.
   • Advised on the latest data sources and input methodologies to strengthen financial forecasting.

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MCC played a critical role in supporting TWP’s bid submission strategy by delivering:

1. Development of a Custom CfD Bid Model
   • Built a financial model from scratch to determine the optimal CfD strike price.
   • Accounted for two separate offshore wind farms, each utilizing distinct technologies (floating and fixed-foundation).
   • Integrated project-specific costs, revenue forecasts, and operational assumptions to reflect real-world conditions.
2. Comprehensive CfD Mechanism Analysis
   • Conducted a detailed review of the CfD framework to ensure full compliance with auction requirements.
   • Evaluated bid submission strategies based on government auction pricing trends and industry benchmarks.
3. Scenario Analysis and Financial Forecasting
   • Sourced relevant operational and financing inputs to ensure accuracy in cost projections.
   • Designed a scenario analysis tool to test multiple assumptions, providing TWP with a flexible and data-driven decision-making framework.
   • Modeled the impact of financing structures, cost variations, and energy output fluctuations on the strike price.
4. Bid Optimization Based on Target IRR
   • Calculated the CfD strike price based on the project’s target internal rate of return (IRR) to ensure financial viability.
   • Provided strategic recommendations to enhance bid competitiveness while balancing risk and return.

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