cc: N.JENKINS@umist.ac.uk
date: Mon, 11 Oct 1999 11:34:24 +0100
from: J.A.Halliday@rl.ac.uk
subject: RE: Text on renewables &  RC programmes
to: m.hulme@uea.ac.uk

Mike,

Lots of text - perhaps best to print it out :

Firstly text for the Challenge 2 : renewables section.

'The Centre will seek to compliment the EPSRC research programme on New and
Renewable Energy Technologies (RNET) and the DTI's R&D programme by
initiating pre-proposal feasibility studies and thus linking into the
existing EPSRC & DTI programmes. The Centre will also seek to extend on a
cross-research council basis the concept pioneered by the Engineering
programme of EPSRC of funding networks to encourage communication between
academics and industry, this would ensure that economic, social science,
biological and environmental expertise is used to the full when considering
the technical solutions to the carbon-free supply of energy. This mirrors
the whole philosophy of the Centre that the way forward is to encourage
cross-discipline research and development into Climate Change problems. The
Centre would draw upon the experience of the Energy Research Unit at RAL who
are co-ordinating an EPSRC-funded network with over 200 members in the field
of Offshore Wind Energy.'  

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Next info on programmes - UMIST have bid into a), RAL&UMIST have bid into b)
and RAL are co-ordinating an EPSRC Network on Offshore Wind Energy funded
under c), RAL/UMIST have bid into d):

a) EPSRC's ELECTRICITY SUPPLY RESEARCH FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

A Programme addressing research issues for the Power Generation,
Transmission & Distribution Sector.


ESR21 addresses research issues for the electricity generation, transmission
and distribution sector, building on previous EPSRC support through ERCOS.
The Programme operates with two calls for Proposals per year (normally in
April and October). 


The Programme will be funded by the Engineering for Infrastructure, the
Environment & Healthcare Programme and Materials Programme. Additional
funding, on a project by project basis, will be available from the DTI for
projects addressing research priorities identified by the Foresight for
Energy Clean Coal Power Generation Taskforce. The estimated Programme budget
is £2M per annum, over 3 years (assuming sufficient high quality research
proposals).

b)EPSRC's RENEWABLE AND NEW ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES 

CALL FOR OUTLINE RESEARCH PROPOSALS

Deadlines for outline proposals: 14 May 1999 and 8 October 1999

1. INTRODUCTION

Proposals are invited for the funding of research projects at eligible
academic institutions through a new EPSRC programme in Renewable and New
Energy Technologies. The programme will commit up to £3.5 million per annum
for new research projects, depending on the quality of proposals received.
This document provides the scope of the programme, describes the assessment
process and gives contact points for further information.

2. BACKGROUND

EPSRC is giving a new focus to research into renewable energy and the
enabling technologies. Some of this research has been funded through
previous EPSRC programmes (e.g. Photovoltaic Technologies, Fuel Cells,
Energy Storage & Recovery) and to a lesser extent through the responsive
mode (e.g. wind energy, grid connection). However, EPSRC is aware of new
challenges and opportunities for multi-disciplinary research which might be
funded through this new activity. EPSRC funds research that has a bearing in
the medium-to-long-term, but is aware of current Government policy being
developed by DTI. The range of such research is potentially huge, but this
call for proposals is based on the recommendations of Halcrow Gilbert
Associates (HGa) who were contracted to carry out a scoping study on EPSRC's
behalf, through the use of questionnaires, interviews and a consultation
workshop. 

3. OBJECTIVES

In encouraging this field of research, EPSRC has the following objectives:

· to focus on medium-to-long-term key research issues for the renewable and
clean energy industries

· to fund research that will take forward and inform Government policy on
new and renewable energy

· to continue to take forward the objectives of Foresight, in particular the
recommendations of the Energy and Marine Foresight Panels

· to allow the development of collaborative/interdisciplinary (larger)
programmes of research 

· to fund more speculative research projects, e.g. (smaller) feasibility
studies

· to encourage networking between academia and industry

· to coordinate activities with the DTI's New and Renewable Energy
programme.

c)EPSRC's ENGINEERING PROGRAMME NETWORKS

Introduction: EPSRC funding is available for the support of UK based
Networks which link academic and industrial groups in new or enhanced
collaborations. Proposals can be submitted at any time in responsive mode or
against managed programmes (as stand alone proposals), should address
priorities within Engineering as identified in the current EPSRC Programme
Landscapes 1998/99 and cover a period of up to 3 years.

Objectives: The development of Networks is to encourage the transfer of
ideas, experimental techniques, models, and technological and scientific
insights both within the engineering research community and with the
appropriate interfacing science, technology and industrial groups. By
supporting the establishment of Networks, which bring together groups with
related objectives, EPSRC will encourage mobility between disciplines,
between Universities and between academe and industry. The increased
cohesion within the community should encourage innovation and creativity and
develop ideas for future support from EPSRC, or European or other
international research programmes.

d) CEC - Framework V - Non Nuclear Energy - 1999 budget = 207.8 MEuro, 2000
budget = 220 MEuro : much of which is for demonstration projects though
collaborative research is also encouraged. Key driver is quote 'Council
resolution on Renewable Energies of May 1998 which considered the target of
doubling the share of renewables in the EU energy balance from 6% today to
12% in 2010' end quote.
 
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Extract from Govt White Paper for you to extract bits from :

New & Renewable Energy- Prospects for the 21st Century -issued in March 1999
 	
 Foreword 
by John Battle
Minister for Energy and Industry

New & Renewable 
Prospects  for the 21st Century

By their nature fossil fuels will inevitably run out. New and renewable
energies will therefore become one of the world's main energy sources in the
new millennium. Developing a thriving renewables industry in the UK
therefore represents a real opportunity for UK plc. It provides a three term
"win-win-win" equation: encouraging the development of new technologies;
creating new jobs; and tackling global environmental challenges. 

Renewable sources of energy make an important contribution to secure,
sustainable and diverse energy supplies and are an essential element of a
cost-effective climate change programme. 

The Government is working towards a target of renewable energy providing 10
per cent  of UK electricity supplies as soon as possible.  It hopes to
achieve this by 2010. Whilst this  is an ambitious target it is not an end
in itself. Rather the programme outlined in this document (and on which we
would welcome your views) aims to give new and renewable technologies a push
in the right direction. I do not want to see renewables stop at 10 per cent.
I want to see a strong, world-beating industry develop in the UK. I also
expect renewables not only to generate power, but also to provide heat and
transport for our homes, industry and commerce in centuries to come.

Renewables are not only important in generating jobs and developing future
industries, they will also play a crucial role in enabling the UK to meet
our environmental targets of reducing greenhouse gases by  12.5 per cent by
2008-2012 and our goal  of reducing emissions of carbon dioxide by  20 per
cent by 2010. As Tony Blair has emphasised, this Government is committed to
putting the environment at the heart of our decision making. As the Kenyan
proverb says, "The earth was not given to us by our parents, it was loaned
to us by our children". We all have a responsibility to ensure that the way
we live today does not adversely affect the inheritance we leave for
generations to come.

This Government is therefore committed  to encouraging sustainable
development; to developing policies and encouraging behaviour which combines
economic, social and environmental objectives to ensure a better quality of
life for everyone. We must find new patterns of production and consumption
that are globally sustainable. Sustainability should not be seen as a
barrier or burden to business. Rather it is economic common sense. The drive
to sustainability will stimulate invention and innovation and will bring new
opportunities for business and growth, both here and in export markets
overseas. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the renewables industry.

The skills and the will are already there in the embryonic UK renewables
industry. Some 650MW of renewable energy capacity from Non-Fossil Fuel
Obligation (NFFO) Orders 1-5, Scottish Renewable Orders (SRO) 1-3  and
Northern Ireland Orders (NI-NFFO)  1-2 are currently operational. The fifth
Non-Fossil Fuel Obligation which I announced  last September represented the
biggest and cheapest order to date. A record 261 projects were contracted
under the Order with a capacity of 1,177MW of electricity - enough  to
supply the needs of 1.4 million homes. Furthermore, with the low cost of
most of the near-market technologies supported, an average price of
2.71p/kWh for the latest Order was just off the competitive market price.

Currently around 3,500 people are directly employed in the renewables
industry in over 700 companies. The majority of companies involved in the
renewables industry are small and medium sized enterprises. However large
multinational companies based in the UK are also moving into the field.
BP/Amoco for example has a growing solar business. National Wind Power, a
subsidiary of National Power, already has some 10 projects across the UK and
has further projects in development world-wide. British industry is also
involved in the development of new energy technologies for the future. Rolls
Royce and Johnson Matthey, amongst others, are involved in  the development
of fuel cell technology.

Two per cent of the UK's electricity supply already comes from renewables.
Renewable projects range from wind farms (such as the community owned
Harlock Hill windfarm in Cumbria or the Border Wind semi-offshore facility
in Blyth harbour), to energy from waste stations (such as the CHP plant at
St James' Hospital in Leeds which uses medical waste to generate
electricity) and hydro-electric stations (such as the 4.2MW Elan Valley
project in mid-Wales). 

As further projects become operational, the proportion of electricity
generated from renewable sources should rise to 5 per cent by 2003. However,
we cannot stand still. A real drive is needed over the next decade to push
renewables into the next millennium. For its part the Government has already
allocated £43.5 million over the next three years to investment in the
development of new and renewable energy. But Government cannot make this
happen on its own. In this document we have set out our analysis of the
status and prospects for renewables; we have also looked at the kinds of
support mechanisms which might be used. I would welcome your views.

I am determined for energy supplies to become more and more sustainable, and
as part of that I want to see the contribution which renewables make to
electricity supplies increase way beyond 10 per cent over the course of the
21st Century, and I encourage you to help make this vision a reality.

John Battle MP


Minister for Energy and Industry

 Summary

The Government has a Manifesto commitment to "a new and strong drive  to
develop renewable sources of energy".  It has undertaken a review of the
status  and prospects of renewables, including an examination of what would
be necessary  and practicable to achieve 10 per cent of  UK electricity
requirements from renewables by 2010 and what contribution renewables could
make to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This Consultation Paper reports
on the outcome of that review and possible ways forward in implementing the
Government's new drive for renewables.

One very clear outcome of the review is to reaffirm the Government's
commitment to the development of renewables and to ensuring they make an
increasing contribution to our energy supplies. The Government intends to
work towards the aim of achieving 10 per cent of the UK's electricity supply
from renewables. Renewables are an essential component of any cost-effective
climate change strategy. Achieving the 10 per cent target could lead to a
reduction of 5 million tonnes in UK carbon emissions, making a valuable
contribution to our overall climate change strategy. But the key role of
renewables will be in the longer term; over time, we will have to reduce our
dependence on fossil fuels and turn increasingly to energy efficiency and
non-fossil sources. Although the Government hopes that it will be able to
achieve its 10 per cent target by around 2010, its key priority is therefore
to ensure that momentum is maintained so that even after 2010 the share of
renewables can continue to rise in response to the need to limit greenhouse
gas emissions to a sustainable level. This will require a level playing
field for renewables in competitive energy markets. As this Paper indicates,
the Government has already made  a very strong commitment to renewable
energy. The Government's support for renewables means that, by 2003, 5 per
cent  of our electricity should be provided by renewables compared to the
current figure of  2 per cent. The Non-Fossil Fuel Obligation (NFFO - see
box on page 22) has provided over £600 million of support for renewables to
date. The Government has introduced the 5th Non-Fossil Fuel Obligation Order
(NFFO 5) for England and Wales in 1998 - the largest ever - and the Third
Scottish Renewables Order in 1999. Support for renewables under the NFFO
arrangements, which has declined recently, will accelerate again in the
first decade of the next century and could rise to around £150 million a
year. The programme has been successful in its objective of driving down
costs - the cost of generating electricity under NFFO contracts has been
halved over the past decade and the more mature renewables technologies are
now almost competitive.

Similarly, the Government has announced  that it is to reverse the downward
trend in expenditure on the renewables research and development programme
which complements the NFFO arrangements. A new and growing R&D effort is now
under way: expenditure will rise from around £10 million in the current
financial year to £18 million in the year 2001-2002.

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Hope this helps !

Jim