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Energy sector responds to Industrial Strategy

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Louise Kingham, chief executive of the Energy Institute, said: “The strategy lays solid, economy-wide foundations and identifies the great challenges of our age. The energy sector has a defining role to play in making a success for the UK of clean growth and the mobility transformation in particular… Sector deals are still needed to up the pace of progress in technologies where the UK has advantage. We look forward to the results of discussions with key sectors such as nuclear, renewables and oil and gas as soon as possible.”


Hugh McNeal, chief executive of RenewableUK, said: “The Government is rightly putting clean growth at the heart of our nation’s Industrial Strategy. Renewables are set to become the backbone of our modern energy system and theplummeting cost of wind power means onshore and offshore wind can help improve the competitiveness of UK industry.So it’s disappointing that the strategy doesn’t set out how we can use onshore wind, the cheapest new generation source, to power industrial growth. Already, we are exporting our skills and knowledge worldwide, winning multi-million-pound contracts in wind and marine energy, including innovative floating offshore wind projects. If this Industrial Strategy fully supports these world-leading sectors, it can drive growth across all parts of the UK and create tens of thousands of high-value jobs.”

Hannah Martin, head of energy at Greenpeace UK, said: “Ministers are right to recognise clean energy as a top priority for British industry and regional regeneration. It’s a sector that holds enormous potential for technological breakthroughs, job creation and boosting productivity. Britain’s economy needs a clean, flexible, and affordable energy system. And it needs to give people clean air by speeding up the end of diesel vehicles. A system led by offshore wind, smart technology, battery storage and electric vehicles will make that happen. This is where the government should be focusing its efforts, rather than propping up astronomically expensive nuclear reactors like Hinkley.”

Nina Skorupska, chief executive at the Renewable Energy Association, said: “This Industrial Strategy recognises the technological revolution taking place across the energy and transport industries, and the value that specific sectors such as the bio-economy, energy efficient construction, and electric vehicles bring. We look forward to continuing to work with the government to develop the “Prospering from the Energy Revolution” programme and Bioeconomy Strategy, which must recognise the value of the full range of energy technologies that the UK is currently capable of deploying. The renewable energy and clean tech sectors are growing areas of the economy that are creating new jobs, deploying low-cost energy, and delivering new export opportunities

Nick Molho, executive director of the Aldersgate group, said: “Government can grow market demand for low carbon goods and services and help maximise the benefits of clean growth for UK plc through clear incentive policies, environmental standards, supportive policies on skills and a public procurement policy that rewards resource and energy efficient business. Going forward, the Industrial Strategy must also ensure that energy intensive industries are supported in a way that is consistent with the UK’s emissions targets and helps grow the role of these high value businesses in the UK’s low carbon supply chains.”

Juergen Maier, Siemens UK chief executive said:“Through today’s Industrial Strategy announcement we are optimistic that through greater investment in R&D, and especially through the application of advanced industrial digital technologies like AI and robotics, we can support many more new and existing manufacturing industries – raising productivity and creating thousands of new highly skilled and well paid jobs.”

Phil Smith, chairman of Cisco for the UK and Ireland said: “If we want to stay competitive in an increasingly challenging world, we need to help companies and individuals build a culture of re-skilling and up-skilling; embracing lifelong learning, so we are best placed to take the advantages of automation and lead with the best jobs, in the new world. As part of this review, we calculated that we need to up-skill a million workers. Today’s announcements get us a step closer to developing a national action plan to build a workforce fit for the future.”

Read the Industrial Strategy: building a Britain fit for the future (web-optimised PDF)

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