Project Aims and Objectives
This piece of work aims to provide an overarching insight into the Research, Development and Demonstration (RD&D) challenges for technologies related to electricity infrastructure. It identifies the innovation challenges that face a range of power infrastructure related technologies, sets out the state-of-the-art in addressing these challenges and the organisational landscape (both funding and RD&D) active in the area. The work then identifies critical gaps in innovation activities and makes recommendations for investors and Government to address these gaps.
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Technology context: Electricity Infrastructure
The renewable (and low-carbon) technology deployment and changes in patterns of demand side activity required to reach the 80% reductions in CO2 by 2050 will precipitate an equivalent change in the electricity infrastructure to support this emerging system. The UK power infrastructure (both transmission and distribution) needs to be fit for purpose and ready to meet the needs of a dramatically different power landscape. This report provides an appraisal of the technical issues facing the evolving network to meet the overarching challenges of maintaining system security and reliability in a low carbon environment.
Project overview
- Overview of technical challenges and the organisational landscape
- Identification of key RD&D activities in the UK and Europe:
- RD&D Gap analysis to highlight 4 areas where further attention may be required:
- Energy Storage
- High Voltage DC Networks
- Smart grids, scope and integration
- Whole system evaluation
- ERP recommendations and priorities for action
Project Working Group Members
National Grid, E.ON, Technology Strategy Board, Energy Technologies Institute, Carbon Trust, Royal Academy of Engineering, ERP Analysis Team
Project Outputs and Final Report
The report was publiched in November 2009:
Final report can be found here
Link to minutes of June 2009 plenary discussion on draft final report
ERP – ETI – RAEng workshop on Heat: 22 January 2009
The Energy Research Partnership, Energy Technologies Institute and Royal Academy of Engineering organised a workshop to examine the role of heat in the UK’s energy system.
Heat accounts for about half of the UK’s current CO2 emissions and was the subject of a consultation by Government. The workshop was designed to raise the level of thinking on heat as an issue, help guide ETI’s future work on heat, and inform participants’ responses to the consultation.
Context setting presentations covered whole systems, policy, and technology angles; followed by an interactive panel discussion with senior figures from private and public sectors.
Click here for the final report of the workshop.
The agenda and presentations are available below.
Whole systems
Policy
Technology
Based on the workshop, ERP submitted a response to DECC’s Heat and Energy Saving Strategy Consultation on 8 May 2009.
Technology matrix
Background
The Energy Research Partnership’s report on ‘UK Energy Innovation’ identified 12 key technology sectors which were expected to transform the UK’s energy landscape, making dramatic reductions in greenhouse gas emissions whilst maintaining secure access to competitive sources of energy. That report set out the support available in each sector along the full innovation chain.
In this project, the status and development needs of 150 specific technologies were studied, to aid public and private sector decision makers in the targeting of energy RDD&D support.
Approach
The assessment followed a rigorous process, with detailed input from experts in each field, and a workshop to peer-review the results. A range of barriers and enablers to bringing each technology to commercial deployment were considered, to produce an intricate and information-rich matrix. This technologies matrix shows the complexity of the energy innovation landscape and will be kept under review to provide an up-to-date resource for business, funders and policy makers.
Output
The report was published in March 2009:
Project report and summary of the Technologies Matrix
Energy Technologies Matrix
ERP regards CCS as an important technology and has worked to help accelerate its development. Much of the work was in 2009, but ERP continues to monitor progress. Details of the presentations and discussions by the ERP and other published work can be found below.
Background
Fossil fuels are a major part of the global energy mix and will remain so for many years to come. Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technologies are being proposed as a means of reducing carbon emissions from a range of sources, including from coal and gas fired power stations and from industry. Tackling these emissions with CCS will significantly increase the prospect of tackling global climate change and is therefore a priority.
ERP’s work in this area aims to provide an overview of the development of CCS and provide input to inform decisions about demonstration projects. This includes identifying engineering gaps and strategies, such as clustering projects, but also putting UK activity in an international context, to identify UK advantage and opportunities for collaboration.
The ERP Plenary meeting discussed CCS at two of its meetings in 2009.
Industry members from ERP have also responded to government consultations. These include responses to:
- DECC consultation Framework for the Development of Clean Coal, Sept 2009
- BERR consultation Towards Carbon Capture and Storage, Sept 2008
Conclusions and Recommendations
The UK must not delay in delivering large scale demonstration projects if it is to benefit from the commercial opportunities that will be available and also to allow fossil fuels to contribute to a secure, low carbon energy system in the UK.
Public funding mechanisms to promote the development and demonstration of the various CCS technologies need to provide confidence to encourage investment in the early projects. Costs could be significantly reduced if the projects are clustered around a common CO2 pipeline network.
A number of demonstration projects are planned across the EU. These should be coordinated to ensure that these projects demonstrate a wide range of technologies as early as possible, so as to understand their costs and potential.
Project Working Group
Doosan Power Systems, Shell, Alstom, DECC, ERP Analysis Team
Recent activities
ERP continues to monitor progress and it is often considered within the context of other projects, such as the Industrial Energy Efficiency project and International Engagement.
Further Information
Please contact the ERP Analysis Team
