Utility Week

10 | 5TH - 11TH JULY 2019 | UTILITY WEEK Policy & Regulation This week UK signs target of net zero by 2050 into law UK is first major economy to set legally binding target of reducing emissions to net zero by 2050 The UK has become the first major economy to set a legally binding target of reducing green- house gas emissions to net zero by 2050. Acting energy and clean growth minister Chris Skidmore signed an amendment to the 2008 Climate Change Act on 27 June. The previous target was an 80 per cent reduction on 1990 levels by the middle of the century. "The UK kick-started the industrial revolution, which was responsible for economic growth across the globe but also for increasing emissions," said Skidmore. "Today we're leading the world yet again in becom- ing the first major economy to pass new laws to reduce emissions to net zero by 2050 while remaining commit- ted to growing the economy – putting clean growth at the heart of our modern industrial strategy. "We're pioneering the way for other countries to follow in our footsteps, driving prosperity by seizing the economic opportunities of becoming a greener economy." Only two other countries have so far signed net zero targets into law – Sweden and New Zealand. However, a total of 15 nations have declared an intention to reach net zero emissions, along with 11 states and regions and 23 cities. Bhutan and Suriname are already carbon neutral. According to the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU), they together represent almost one-sixth (16 per cent) of global economic output. ECIU director Richard Black said: "Having a net zero target with a date before mid-century is probably the best single indicator of whether a nation is serious about delivering what it promised at the Paris summit." TG WATER Northumbrian to pay £1.2m for wastewater offences Northumbrian Water has agreed to pay £1.179 million aŸer it was found to have committed multiple environmental offences by the Environment Agency. The company has accepted responsibility for a total of five offences relating to the dis- charge of wastewater at sites in West Cornforth, Crook Beck and Chilton in County Durham and Marske-by-the-Sea in North Yorkshire. The majority of the money – £970,000 – will be handed to local charities and environmen- tal organisations. The rest will be used to cover the Environ- ment Agency's costs and fund various actions by Northum- brian Water to rectify its failures, such as surveys, investigations and site repairs. Fiona Morris, environment planning and engagement man- ager for the Environment Agency in the North East, said: "We feel enforcement undertakings are a more balanced response to deal- ing with these environmental offences. The outcome is benefi- cial to the environment relevant to where the offence took place. "This approach achieves more than if the company in question had been convicted and fined." Richard Warneford, waste- water director at Northumbrian Water, said: "In these incidents, which happened in 2015 and 2016, we reacted as quickly as possible to minimise the impact and have since worked hard to reduce the likelihood of such problems occurring in these or other areas again." ENERGY Ofgem inclined to back Together claim Regulator Ofgem says it is inclined to accept Together Energy's claim for a £4.8 million payment to settle the costs it incurred during the supplier of last resort process last Decem- ber, when the Scottish company took over the 36,000 customers of failed supplier One Select. In January, Together Energy gave notice to Ofgem of its inten- tion to submit a claim for a last resort supply payment. Ofgem published its provi- sional decision, which is subject to a consultation and final approval, on 28 June. The letter, written by Philippa Pickford, Ofgem's director of future retail markets, says the regulator is minded to allow the supplier to claim for the costs of protecting the credit balances One Select owed to its customers and certain other costs incurred as part of the process. Ofgem said it is expecting to make a final decision on the matter in August to enable the agreed amount to be recov- ered through relevant network charges in the period 2019/20 for electricity and 2020/21 for gas. Industry stakeholders have until 26 July to respond to the consultation. Skidmore: 'seizing the economic opportunities' The government has given a £15 million boost to energy efficiency in homes with the announcement of two new innovation funds. The £5 million Green Home Finance Innovation Fund will support the development of new green home finance products, such as green mortgages, which offer customers a lower interest rate once they have upgraded ENVIRONMENT Government gives £15 million boost to energy efficiency in homes the energy efficiency rating of their property. Meanwhile, the Whole House Retrofit competition will give companies a chance to win a share of £10 million by finding low-cost techniques for retrofitting the UK's old housing stock. This could include, for example, pre-fabricating facades off-site to minimise disruption. Acting energy and clean growth minister Chris Skidmore said: "To fulfil our world-leading commitment to reach net zero emissions by 2050, we need an overhaul of our housing stock to tackle the disproportionate amount of carbon emissions from buildings. "By rolling out more green mortgages and reducing the costs of retrofitting older homes, we're encouraging homeowners to improve the efficiency of their homes and save money on their energy bills, helping to ensure everyone has access to a warm and comfortable home." The announcement came shortly ahead of the launch of the government's Green Finance Strategy by City minister John Glen on 2 July (see Finance news, page 19).

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