£150million government manufacturing strategy is to focus on the low carbon economy
Business secretary John Hutton yesterday launched a new £150 million government manufacturing strategy, with a stated aim of "seizing the opportunities in the low carbon economy". Higher energy prices will mean industry requiring more clean energy sources and energy efficiency systems, the new strategy suggests.
Mr Hutton said that renewable and low carbon energy industries can help the UK to rebound from current economic difficulties - creating 260,000 jobs over the next 10 years. He is creating a new Office for Renewable Energy Deployment to address obstacles to the use of more renewable energy and to help develop the UK supply chain. This summer's draft Renewable Energy Strategy predicted a £100 billion investment in renewable energy up to 2020. Mr Hutton also revealed plans for a new Office of Nuclear Development will help develop the nuclear supply chain to help British business benefit from the £20 billion expected to be spent on a new generation of nuclear power plants.
Launching the new strategy, entitled "New Challenges, New Opportunities", Mr Hutton said the UK was still the world's sixth largest manufacturer, but pointed to the changing global landscape for manufacturing - directed towards low carbon technologies.
Mr Hutton said: "I want the UK to be at the forefront of opportunities opened up by the move towards a low carbon economy. With the right support in place, we can grow our nuclear and renewables industries to become world-leaders in green technologies, supporting hundreds of thousands of 'green collar jobs'."
The government is to consult and produce an integrated Low Carbon Industrial Strategy next year, with an "immediate focus" on supply chains for nuclear and renewable energy equipment and Low Carbon Vehicles.
Opportunities
The manufacturing strategy itself predicts opportunities for the expansion of machinery equipment manufacturing, "especially those linked to electricity generation technologies", and the opportunities from the global demand for more efficient engines and transport.
The document also cites the CBI Climate Change Task Force report in stating that there are "considerable opportunities" for smaller companies in areas including renewable electricity and road transport fuels, domestic energy efficiency and housing.
An Office for Renewable Energy Deployment will be created via next year's completed Renewable Energy Strategy, with predictions that marine renewable energy alone could bring in £300-900 million in revenues by 2020.
The move to electric cars should also bring opportunities to British companies, the strategy states, and the government is supporting a major new pilot programme to foster plug-in hybrids which can be fuelled by electricity from the grid or petrol. A further programme will work to demonstrate the use of electric cars in a "real-world" transport system.
Further opportunities are suggested by the new manufacturing strategy from oil and gas industry expertise transfering into carbon capture and storage (CCS) applications. CCS - removing the climate change-enhancing carbon dioxide from fossil fuels in energy generation - is "likely to be a major technology to help address climate change", the strategy said.
It said: "Whilst CCS is not yet demonstrated at a commercial scale, the International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that CCS will need to be installed on the equivalent of 630 coal-fired power plants by 2030."
Nuclear energy will also represent opportunities for UK industry - both the seven or eight new large reactors needed in this country and the 60 new plants needed around the world.
The government said it wanted to create a UK nuclear supply chain competitive with that abroad, modeled on the expansion of the oil industry in the North Sea during the 1970s, through a new Office of Nuclear Development and a new National Skills Academy for Nuclear.
Skills
With the renewable energy sector crying out for more skills to fill the thousands of "green collar jobs" predicted by both the manufacturing strategy and last year's Renewable Energy Strategy, the government has said it will convene a high level forum on the issue this autumn.
It said: "The forum will establish a cross-sector employer-led Strategic Advisory Panel. The Panel will be tasked with aligning the skills system behind the challenges and opportunities of a low carbon, resource efficient economy."
Mr Hutton, who launched the manufacturing strategy jointly with the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills, said: "We must attract more talented young people - the lifeblood of future success - into the industry and ensure that this talent is nurtured and developed."
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British are "bored" with Climate Change
A new energy report suggests that British people are less environmentally conscious than they were five years ago.
4 out of 10 britons take no action at all to reduce their household carbon emissions, and twice as many people are now "bored" by talk of climate change as in 2005. Experts warn that green fatigue is one of the major reasons as to why there are more cars on the roads, more planes in the sky and no reductions in the mountain of packaging waste. The report reveals that too few people are making an effort to reduce their household CO2 emissions and environmentalists believe the recession is further undermining public commitment.
The report, by market researchers Mintel, shows that many of Britain's 26 million homes fail to make simple adjustments such as switching off lights, turning down thermostats, and switching off appliances rather than leaving them on standby. The findings also reveal that people are less willing to spend money on energy-efficient appliances than they were five years ago. Analysts believe the recession together with a backlash against "extreme" environmentalist pressure has reduced people's enthusiasm to combat climate change.
The report also found that resistance to saving the planet was greater among men; one in four said they think there is too much concern over the environment, compared with one in six women.
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More information on the 2016 definition of "Zero Carbon".
Housing Minister, Grant Shapps announced additional information about the new definition of "Zero Carbon".
The Government plans to investigate setting up a community energy fund which will be used to pay for district heating and renewable energy schemes.
Developers who pay into the fund will not have to install onsite renewables or microgeneration equipment. Many developers have welcomed the flexibility of paying into a fund rather than grappling with renewables on each site.
However, the full definition of 'zero-carbon' has once again been delayed. This is despite a pre-election promise to get the definition of zero carbon finalised “within weeks” of getting into office.
The new Government Housing Minister has recently announced that the coalition will review the level of on-site renewables required - before publishing the final definition of the standard, which all new homes will have to reach after 2016.
In the announcement, the Minister also re-affirmed his commitment to all new homes being zero-carbon from 2016 and confirmed the introduction of the ‘Fabric Energy Efficiency Standard' which requires a minimum standard in relation to insulation levels and air tightness and thermal bridging in buildings.
Zero carbon is required of all Code for Sustainable Homes level six homes. Clarification of what zero carbon will mean is still to be decided.
If you require assistance with your Code for Sustainable Homes level requirements, contact Ecowise - we are a fully accredited Code for Sustainable Homes assessment organisation.
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Pilot Tidal Energy Scheme for North Wales Coast
Conwy County Borough Council has backed plans for a pilot tidal energy scheme off the North Wales Coast.
The £150 million scheme at Llanddulas in North Wales would provide a testing facility for turbine designers and manufacturers, and assess the environmental impact of turbines.
The project was given approval by the council as part of a strategic regeneration strategy for the Conwy coast, prepared by consultant Capita Symonds.
Paul Terry, Capita Symonds, said: "Tidal power will play a key role in providing a sustainable energy source for future generations. The North Wales coast is an ideal place for such a scheme as it’s blessed with a good tidal range and suitable ocean depth." He added that the project could also help protect the coast from rising sea levels, storm surges and coastal erosion.
The regeneration strategy also calls for seven new visitor centres costing £30m should be built at key locations stretching from Conwy to Rhuddlan. But North Wales Tourism chairman Chris Jackson raised doubts over whether the proposals could realistically be funded in the current economic climate. The council’s approval now means that Capita Symonds will seek funding for feasibility studies and investigations to develop a business case for the scheme.
