The Government has announced a series of investments to secure the UK’s energy independence, but industry experts are concerned the plans fail to address existing energy waste
As part of ‘Energy Security Day’, the Government has announced a multi-billion investment in a series of measures that aim to establish UK energy independence and reduce household bills, as well as developing the country’s global position in achieving net zero.
The Powering Up Britain report outlines plans to:
- Open the fifth round of the UK’s world-leading scheme to incentivise investment in renewable electricity, backed by a budget of £205m
- Reform the planning process to enable the building of more energy infrastructure including solar power and offshore wind projects more quickly
- Backing the first tranche of new green hydrogen production projects under the £240m Net Zero Hydrogen Fund
- Kickstart investment into the UK’s emerging floating offshore wind industry by launching a £160m fund to support port infrastructure projects
- Invest more than £380m into boosting EV charging points and infrastructure across the country to support the rollout of electric vehicles
- Expand Government energy efficiency support to even more households – The Great British Insulation Scheme, a rebranded ECO+, will upgrade 300,000 of the country’s least energy efficient homes
- Reducing reliance on fossil fuels to heat buildings with a new £30m Heat Pump Investment Accelerator, leveraging £270m private investment to boost manufacturing and supply of heat pumps
- Extend the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which offers a £5,000 grant to anyone buying a heat pump, to 2028
Other developments announced for Energy Security Day include the appointment of Simon Bowen as interim chair of new flagship nuclear body, Great British Nuclear (GBN), with Gwen Parry-Jones OBE as interim chief executive officer. GBN’s first announced project is a new competition seeking the best Small Modular Reactor technologies for development by Autumn.
Carbon Capture clusters will continue their rollout, building on £20bn of CCUS funding.
Industry responses say the plans do not go far enough
Melanie Leech, chief executive of the British Property Federation, said:
“Today’s report is another statement of intent when what we need is urgent action.
“If Government is serious about achieving net-zero by 2050 there must be more recognition of the challenges in decarbonising the built environment, which accounts for around 25% of UK emissions.
“While the report acknowledges the planning ‘bottleneck’ in updating historic and listed buildings, there must be more urgency in aligning the planning system to the net zero agenda and a national retrofit strategy that supports and incentivises green refurbishment.
“We also need clarity on minimum energy efficiency standards and regulation that establishes a clear and consistent methodology for measuring the environmental performance of a building over its full life cycle, which will guide the property sector in how to approach development and refurbishment.
“The property sector is fully committed to net-zero but Government must seize the moment and deliver bolder and more ambitious policies that will support the rapid change needed.”
Sam Rees, senior public affairs officer for RICS, said: “While RICS welcomes any investment in the decarbonisation of the UK, RICS is disappointed by the lack of ambition or indeed any major new announcements – especially in light of the publication of the Independent Review of Net Zero led by Chris Skidmore MP. With an estimated 15m homes needing a form of energy efficiency improvement work, the insulation policy targeting 300,000 homes falls well short of the ambition needed.
“Powering Up Britain contained little in the way of incentives for the majority of consumers and businesses to create low-carbon, energy-efficient properties. Further expected announcements by the government look set to push back decarbonisation of the built environment, including a now 12-year phasing out of gas boilers and delays to create higher EPC-rated homes.
“RICS will continue to work with UK Government, the Energy Efficiency Taskforce and Net Zero Coalition to push for greater resources towards creating a low-carbon UK, recognising the important role surveyors have in supporting the net zero transition.”
“A long way to go and not much time to do it”
Declan McGeeney, director of UK infrastructure at Laing O’Rourke, said:
“We welcome today’s step forward in the development of small modular reactors, but if we are to meet net zero targets, we also need more gigawatt facilities like Hinkley Point C to increase domestic production of the reliable, always-on, low carbon power that nuclear provides.
The reality is that after decades of under investment in our national energy infrastructure, we still have a long way to go and not much time to do it. The Government is doing the right thing in seeking to speed up the planning process to accelerate renewable energy investment. Delivering a nuclear facility can take two decades, but half of that is needed to secure planning consent. This must change so that we can move from planning to delivery mode.
The Government and construction industry also need to work more closely together to find ways to accelerate progress. For its part, the industry needs to increase productivity. As a proud member of the UK’s new nuclear supply chain that’s delivering HPC, we’re very focused on this and have already identified improvements that will help us deliver Sizewell C – and SMR facilities – in less time.”
A missed opportunity for retrofitting
Julie Hirigoyen, chief executive at UKGBC said:
“The Government has today doubled down on new clean energy generation, a positive stimulus at this febrile moment for energy security. But it has missed an opportunity by failing to publish a comprehensive national plan to curb the staggering levels of energy waste from our homes and buildings. Without this, we’re trapped into unsustainable demand for heat and electricity, making it extraordinarily difficult to see how we’ll pay our bills or hit our climate goals.
“Initiatives such as the ECO+ scheme and extension to heat pump support, while welcome, will only reach a fraction of the 27m homes that need retrofitting. Similarly, reforms to the planning system do not include the net zero test recommended by Chris Skidmore MP.
“As our climate emergency intensifies, the Government should be leading from the front by seizing the opportunities of a nationwide retrofit plan that would deliver £56bn to the UK’s green economy, slash energy bills to save households £8bn every year and create 500,000 skilled jobs in a decade.
“We hope that the Government makes use of the opportunities to get on track offered by the Energy Efficiency Taskforce and amendments to the planning system through the Levelling Up Bill.”
