On the 19th October, the government published its Net Zero Strategy, building on the
previous Ten Point Plan and Energy White paper, and laying out a more precise financial
roadmap to lead the UK to its 2050 Net Zero target. The government believes
that this new Strategy will lead to the full decarbonisation of the power
system by 2035. Within the scope of the bioeconomy, the Strategy has revealed
the following ambitions and commitments:
- The government aims to kick-start the commercialisation of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) made from household waste, flue gases from industry, carbon captured from the atmosphere and excess electricity. The aim is to deliver 10% SAF by 2030. This will be supported by £180 million which will go towards develop SAF plants.
- Zero emission freight trials will be expanded to look into the viability of three different zero emissions HGV technologies at scale in the UK. This will allow the government to determine their operational benefits and the infrastructure that is required to support such fleets.
- Industrial carbon capture and hydrogen production will be supported through the new Industrial and Hydrogen Revenue Support scheme, which will award a total of £140 million. In addition, Hynet Cluster in North West England and North Wales and the East Coast Cluster in Teesside and the Humber will become national carbon capture centres.
- £124 million will be added to the existing Nature for Climate Fund, which aims to restore peats and woodlands, and increase the overall wildland area in the country. £75 million will also be delivered to support net zero related R&D across Natural Resources, Waste & F-gases.
Overall, the government believes that the entire roadmap will secure
440,000 jobs and unlock £90 billion in private investment by 2030, therefore
strengthening the country’s economy and ensuring its energy security.
Following the
release of the Strategy, the Association for Renewable Energy and Clean
Technology (REA), has published a short press release summarising its views on
the government’s plan. Overall, the REA deems that although the Net Zero
Strategy is “welcome”, it does not do enough and does not help the country get
closer to its 2050 objective. Although the REA agrees and thoroughly supports
the ambitions detailed in the Strategy, it argues that not enough is being done
to make these ambitions into reality, and that crucial and meaningful landmarks
are not being hit.
The government’s
Net Zero Strategy is available here.
The REA’s press
release can be found here.