There’s a powerful argument behind the recently published energy security strategy. In fact it should surprise us all that we’ve gone this long without having a strategy about how we secure our energy supplies. Because there is little else that is as fundamental to our prosperity as a nation. As reliance on others increases, so does our vulnerability. And that’s where the powerful argument for the strategy comes in. It sets out the need to accelerate our transition away from expensive fossil fuel prices, set by global markets that we can’t control, and supplied by others who can turn them off in a heartbeat.
The soaring price of gas is being compounded by the uncertain times we see globally, coming not just from the war in Ukraine, but also from the Covid-19 pandemic and the restarting of economies around the world after periods of slow-down. This is already hitting Lancashire businesses hard. I’ve spoken to companies in Burnley that tell me their bills are rising exponentially, in some cases by multitudes of 3 or 4. That is not only outrageous but clearly unsustainable too.
In the long-term, renewables are our best defence to this threat to our economy. The well thought out strategy that has been published aims to ensure that we are shielded from volatility and secure in the knowledge we can meet all our energy needs. No one can turn off our wind supply for the turbines that grace our hills and seas; our nuclear power will provide a secure baseline provision; and transitioning to products like air-source heat pumps will reduce demand for gas from households too.
Lancashire SMEs are also strongly placed to benefit from the pledge to build back nuclear, with their outsized ole in the sector’s supply chain.
A new body will oversee the delivery of the new power stations, recognising that there has been drift for too long, and the idea of small modular reactors, which could be cheaper and quicker to commission will continue to be explored. And this is all supported by the new the new Nuclear Energy (Financing) Act which provides a funding model that reduces our reliance on overseas developers for financing new nuclear projects, and will substantially increase the pool of potential private investors to include British pension funds, insurers and other institutional investors.
The approach to nuclear is long overdue. It will help keep the lights on and our businesses powered – and will create highly skilled jobs, with Lancashire and all its heritage in the nuclear industry playing a major role.
The commitments that have been pledged to wind, hydrogen, solar, oil and gas, and heat pumps as sources of production are also good news for the county’s growing low carbon energy sector.
Thousands of Lancashire businesses are playing their role in energy and environment and that figure will only increase. Our FE and HE providers will play a key role too. In Lancashire we are seeing the establishment of a new Institute of Technology, bringing together universities and colleges to develop local skills expertise in engineering, manufacturing, the built environment and energy – all of which will be key to our energy independence.
However, this is a long-term plan. It won’t be delivered overnight, and in the meantime, we have a supply and demand problem that is likely to continue to cause our businesses difficulties for some time to come.
That can’t just be ignored. Businesses in all sectors are already working to ensure greater energy efficiency. Lancashire is leading the way in much of the work to reduce consumption and the move towards greener energy.
However, there is more that can be done, and to tackle the current energy crisis I believe we need to show the same ambition and urgency that was on show during the Covid-19 pandemic.
If we can develop a vaccine in around 12 months and get it into people’s arms, and create the IT systems that delivered furlough support in a matter of weeks, I can’t see why we can’t take that same approach when it comes to developing and commissioning large-scale windfarms, for instance.
It is about using all the vigour and intensity that we put into the vaccine programme to meet this latest challenge to our economy. We need to harness that energy to succeed.
The challenge is there for us to take.
