UK told it must double low carbon investment to meet net zero targets
(2023/05/23)
- Reference: 1684830732
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2023/05/23/uk_net_zero_warning/
- Source link:
Great Britain needs to at least double its low carbon investment if it is to reach the ambition of achieving net zero by 2050.
According to a report by the National Audit Office (NAO), the government estimates that new low carbon investment in 2022 in the UK was £23 billion. But this will need to swell two to three times by the late 2020s and 2030s, the public spending watchdog said.
The government expects most of this increase will need to come from the private sector but it is currently not able to estimate what the present level of private capital investment in net zero is, although it has commissioned an external project to look into it, [1]the NAO said .
[2]
"While the government is beginning to ask the right questions on how best to support innovation needed to achieve net zero, the lack of clarity regarding government responsibility for overseeing end-to-end progress is concerning," said Gareth Davies, head of the NAO.
[3]
[4]
Where government help is available, it might be hard to understand. A mapping exercise found 115 funding programs supporting net zero research and innovation activities across eight public bodies, ranging £0.35 million to £685 million. The total support amounted to £4.5 billion between 2022 to 2025, the study found.
Davies said: "The complexity of funding routes makes it tough to track spending and assess its efficacy. Moreover, the lack of clear definition of what success will look like and by when will make it difficult to assess whether the investment is on track."
[5]
The NAO said the government needed to progress with the Net Zero Research and Innovation Framework by rapidly strengthening its delivery plans. If not, it could "risk of jeopardising its carbon and economic objectives, as well as value for money from its £4.2 billion investment," Davies said.
[6]TSMC brags of 20TWh solar scheme. Feels a bit like greenwashing to us
[7]AWS wants to cook its datacenter chips with vegetable oil
[8]UK PM splits govt department in 4, creates dedicated 'Science and Tech' bit
[9]Private company set up to oversee UK's prototype fusion reactor
The government expects research and innovation to play a crucial part in the UK achieving net zero. The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) had responsibility for net zero policy until it was transferred to the new Department for Energy Security & Net Zero (DESNZ) on February 7. BEIS identified that net zero would require "a step change" in the rate of new technologies and processes being developed and deployed into the market and being adopted by businesses and consumers.
Energy Security Secretary and minister for the Net Zero department Grant Shapps last month set out "multibillion" plans to slash carbon from the energy supply chain. Projects included £160 million to support port infrastructure projects, £240 million for a Net Zero Hydrogen Fund, and £205 million to encourage investment in renewable electricity.
"Access to cheap, abundant and reliable energy provide the foundation stone of a thriving economy with our homes and businesses relying on it to deliver our future prosperity," Shapps said at the time.
The Climate Change Act 2008 sets the UK's legally binding targets to reduce emissions. In June 2019, Parliament passed an amendment to the Act, committing the UK to achieve "net zero" emissions by 2050.
[10]
The government was forced to revise its Net Zero Strategy following a legal challenge by campaign groups Friends of the Earth, ClientEarth, and Good Law Project.
In March, Friends of the Earth head of policy Mike Childs said: "Legally binding climate budgets are essential stepping-stones to ensure that the UK’s net zero target is actually met. Net zero isn't just good news for our climate, it will also create new jobs and opportunities, and wean the nation off the fossil fuels that are driving the cost-of-living crisis.
"Ministers must now rise to the challenge with a Net Zero Strategy that is lawful, boosts the UK's international credibility and helps secure the huge economic benefits that building a greener, cleaner future will bring. We will be scrutinizing the new plan closely to ensure it is credible and will consider legal action again if it falls short of what is legally required." ®
Get our [11]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.nao.org.uk/reports/support-for-innovation-to-deliver-net-zero/
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_specialfeatures/emergingcleanenergytechweek&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2ZGyOxhPauTeqeLP7t30eRgAAAJI&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
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[6] https://www.theregister.com/2023/04/22/tsmc_pushes_20gwh_solar_scheme/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2023/03/20/aws_wants_to_cook_its/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/08/uk_beis_split/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/06/step_fusion_private_firm/
[10] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_specialfeatures/emergingcleanenergytechweek&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33ZGyOxhPauTeqeLP7t30eRgAAAJI&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[11] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
According to a report by the National Audit Office (NAO), the government estimates that new low carbon investment in 2022 in the UK was £23 billion. But this will need to swell two to three times by the late 2020s and 2030s, the public spending watchdog said.
The government expects most of this increase will need to come from the private sector but it is currently not able to estimate what the present level of private capital investment in net zero is, although it has commissioned an external project to look into it, [1]the NAO said .
[2]
"While the government is beginning to ask the right questions on how best to support innovation needed to achieve net zero, the lack of clarity regarding government responsibility for overseeing end-to-end progress is concerning," said Gareth Davies, head of the NAO.
[3]
[4]
Where government help is available, it might be hard to understand. A mapping exercise found 115 funding programs supporting net zero research and innovation activities across eight public bodies, ranging £0.35 million to £685 million. The total support amounted to £4.5 billion between 2022 to 2025, the study found.
Davies said: "The complexity of funding routes makes it tough to track spending and assess its efficacy. Moreover, the lack of clear definition of what success will look like and by when will make it difficult to assess whether the investment is on track."
[5]
The NAO said the government needed to progress with the Net Zero Research and Innovation Framework by rapidly strengthening its delivery plans. If not, it could "risk of jeopardising its carbon and economic objectives, as well as value for money from its £4.2 billion investment," Davies said.
[6]TSMC brags of 20TWh solar scheme. Feels a bit like greenwashing to us
[7]AWS wants to cook its datacenter chips with vegetable oil
[8]UK PM splits govt department in 4, creates dedicated 'Science and Tech' bit
[9]Private company set up to oversee UK's prototype fusion reactor
The government expects research and innovation to play a crucial part in the UK achieving net zero. The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) had responsibility for net zero policy until it was transferred to the new Department for Energy Security & Net Zero (DESNZ) on February 7. BEIS identified that net zero would require "a step change" in the rate of new technologies and processes being developed and deployed into the market and being adopted by businesses and consumers.
Energy Security Secretary and minister for the Net Zero department Grant Shapps last month set out "multibillion" plans to slash carbon from the energy supply chain. Projects included £160 million to support port infrastructure projects, £240 million for a Net Zero Hydrogen Fund, and £205 million to encourage investment in renewable electricity.
"Access to cheap, abundant and reliable energy provide the foundation stone of a thriving economy with our homes and businesses relying on it to deliver our future prosperity," Shapps said at the time.
The Climate Change Act 2008 sets the UK's legally binding targets to reduce emissions. In June 2019, Parliament passed an amendment to the Act, committing the UK to achieve "net zero" emissions by 2050.
[10]
The government was forced to revise its Net Zero Strategy following a legal challenge by campaign groups Friends of the Earth, ClientEarth, and Good Law Project.
In March, Friends of the Earth head of policy Mike Childs said: "Legally binding climate budgets are essential stepping-stones to ensure that the UK’s net zero target is actually met. Net zero isn't just good news for our climate, it will also create new jobs and opportunities, and wean the nation off the fossil fuels that are driving the cost-of-living crisis.
"Ministers must now rise to the challenge with a Net Zero Strategy that is lawful, boosts the UK's international credibility and helps secure the huge economic benefits that building a greener, cleaner future will bring. We will be scrutinizing the new plan closely to ensure it is credible and will consider legal action again if it falls short of what is legally required." ®
Get our [11]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.nao.org.uk/reports/support-for-innovation-to-deliver-net-zero/
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_specialfeatures/emergingcleanenergytechweek&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2ZGyOxhPauTeqeLP7t30eRgAAAJI&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_specialfeatures/emergingcleanenergytechweek&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZGyOxhPauTeqeLP7t30eRgAAAJI&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_specialfeatures/emergingcleanenergytechweek&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33ZGyOxhPauTeqeLP7t30eRgAAAJI&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_specialfeatures/emergingcleanenergytechweek&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZGyOxhPauTeqeLP7t30eRgAAAJI&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2023/04/22/tsmc_pushes_20gwh_solar_scheme/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2023/03/20/aws_wants_to_cook_its/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/08/uk_beis_split/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/06/step_fusion_private_firm/
[10] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_specialfeatures/emergingcleanenergytechweek&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33ZGyOxhPauTeqeLP7t30eRgAAAJI&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[11] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
John Robson
Reduce is always the first element of the mantra...
Sleeping isn't the biggest issue in the world, though it is a constant draw - take the idle power draw and multiply it by 8.5 as a good approximation for the units used in a year (that allows for 260 hours of active use, five hours a week).
That kind of calculation means I'm not worried by the watt each of my smart thermostats and plugs take - they definitely help me understand and limit energy usage.
EVs are good compared with ICE, though walking is better, and a pedal cycle is the most efficient form of transport by a long way.
Investment?
Anonymous Coward
Can someone quantify these "huge economic benefits" !?
Perhaps I'm just a bit slow, but when you mention "investment" so many times in an article, you kind of expect to get something back at the end of it.
Or has The Register just turned into the tech arm of The Guardian?
The whole of europe could simply cease to exist tomorrow, and it would just be a rounding error on global emissions compared to increases India, China and the US. And anyway Net Zero by 2050 is just an arbitrary target, it's not an investment.
I’d argue that it isn’t just about investing in low carbon energy, it’s also about not being so profligate in our use of energy.
‘Sleeping’ devices use a surprising amount of power. Games consoles particularly so. So don’t let the device sleep. If you aren’t using it, turn it off altogether. I’ve put a switch in each room that turns off all the sockets (because I’m too lazy to do them individually!)
‘Smart’ devices are generally wasteful and don’t add significantly to quality of life. There are exceptions like smart thermostats, which can actually save energy, but in most cases think before buying. Is it really going to improve your quality of life so significantly?
Electric cars are great, but not necessarily environmentally friendly. Use a bike for short journeys, and when buying a car don’t buy an SUV when a smaller car will meet your needs.
Bitcoin is a catastrophic waste of power. Let’s ditch it.
Do all of that (and I’m sure that there are lots of other ideas which could save power too), and we won’t need as much energy generating capacity of any kind. And if we don’t need it then we can’t be held to ransom over it - whether through energy prices or through enemy states threatening to turn off the oil / gas or blowing up the generating infrastructure.