UK Govt Plots £80m Green Energy Investment
The government has unveiled plans to create a fund of almost £80 million to help cut carbon emissions and costs for homes and businesses.
The green energy investment comes as part of the UK’s efforts to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. The fund will finance a range of schemes, including plans to retrofit homes with energy-efficient insulation and grants for businesses to install technology to both cut carbon emissions and reduce energy bills.
The full breakdown of the £80 million green energy investment pot is as follows:
- £30 million for the first phase of the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (IETF), which aims to support energy-intensive manufacturers such as car factories in reducing their carbon footprint.
- £25 million towards heat networks, including a trial in Gateshead which will use geothermal water in disused mines to heat 1,250 households.
- £24 million towards retrofitting homes with the latest green technology and insulation, cutting household bills and emissions.
Cut emissions and bills
The IETF offers grants to businesses with high energy use in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to install green technology in order to shrink their carbon emissions and cut their bills. The initial £30 million will be boosted to an eventual £289 million and will be available up until 2024.
The remaining £49 million of the green energy investment will be funded through the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Energy Innovation Programme.
Its £25 million heat networks funding will harness geothermal water sitting in thousands of disused mines up and down the country. Experts have predicted that if the Gateshead trial proves successful and economically sound, it could be scaled up to provide energy for an eventual six million homes.
Finally, the £24 million investment in green homes focuses on three specific areas:
- £7.7 million towards cutting the cost of retrofitting green tech and better insulation in over 300 council houses, with pilot schemes starting soon in Cornwall, Nottingham and Sutton.
- £1.8 million to support lenders in developing green home finance products.
- £14.6 million on a pilot scheme to bring 750 innovative heat pumps to the South East of England, the South East of Scotland and Newcastle.
Announcing the fund, Energy Minister Kwasi Kwarteng said: “We want to invest now to ensure we continue to propel the UK towards a stronger, greener future.
“This new £80 million investment will help to reduce emissions across our economy, which will save people money on energy bills and protect jobs in heavy industry.”