Government awards £12m to cut emissions from energy-intensive industries

The Government states that is has now awarded more than £34m through the IETF, since it launched in June 2020

The UK Government has today (13 February) unveiled the 22 winning projects of its latest round of grants from the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (IETF). Projects will receive a share of £12.4m, to be used to cut energy usage and reduce emissions.

Industry accounts for around 16% of UK emissions and the Government states that emissions from this area will need to be reduced by two-thirds by 2035 in order to align with the net-zero target. Research has previously warned that globally, some industrial sectors including cement are emitting at twice the rate now than they were in the early 2000s.

Winning projects are across key sub-sectors, including pharmaceuticals, steel, paper, and food and drink. Projects include a Welsh food firm upgrading its heating system to an air source heat pump, a tarmac manufacturer capturing waste heat to create electricity and a cheese producer investing in a new thermal storage system.

Graham Stuart, Minister at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said: “Boosting the energy efficiency of industrial processes is a critical step not only in our transition to a lower-carbon economy, but also by helping businesses to cut their energy costs and protect valuable British jobs.

“That’s why the government has stepped in once again to support energy-intensive industries, with a fresh funding round to unleash the next generation of green innovators who are re-shaping the way technology can reduce carbon emissions.”

The Government states that it has now awarded more than £34m through the IETF, since it launched in June 2020.

However, research suggests that existing Government funding and policies will not be enough to help sectors like manufacturing and construction reach net-zero.

Last year, the Climate Change Committee warned that “planned policies will not deliver enough emissions reductions to meet the Government’s intended emissions pathway for manufacturing and construction”, adding that there is “significant risk” or failure to deliver, based on focusing on nascent technologies such as hydrogen and carbon capture and storage (CCS).