Press Room
Low carbon growth measures need to go a lot further say, grant
thornton
If you are writing on today's announcement in the Pre-Budget
report on low-carbon growth, please consider the following comments
from Nathan Goode, Energy and Renewable partner at Grant Thornton
UK LLP.
Carbon capture and storage demonstration projects - Nathan says:
"The process for identifying sites for carbon capture and storage
(CCS) is still, for the most part, in difficulty. The focus should
therefore be on ensuring the existing process works better before
more funding is sent in its direction. There is also a question
mark over who will ensure that these projects are value for money
and effectively managed."
Funding carbon capture and storage demonstration projects via
contributions from electricity suppliers - Nathan says:
"Contributions from electricity suppliers towards CCS are positive
on the face of it but this measure will be less favourable among
many if the costs are merely passed back in the direction of paying
electricity customers."
Establishing Infrastructure UK to leverage further investment in
low-carbon projects including by investing €100 million in a
European Investment Bank-led fund to deploy up to €1.5 billion of
equity - Nathan says: "The UK has put €100 million into a funding
pot for low carbon projects but the key question is how much from
the total fund will be passed back into the UK."
£120 million for low-carbon industries in the UK, including new
manufacturing and testing facilities for offshore wind - Nathan
says: "Contractors and suppliers involved in new manufacturing and
testing facilities for offshore wind will be required to have
accreditation in this area. This means that the government will
face huge time pressures in finding accredited workers in time to
meet extremely challenging EU targets."
For further information, please contact:
Stephanie Aneto, Grant Thornton press office, tel: 020 7728 2940 or
email: stephanie.aneto@gtuk.com