NEWS & QUOTES Centrica commits to be net zero by 2045
ecognising the urgent need to make net zero a reality, Centrica has announced that it will accelerate its commitment to be net zero by 2045, five years ahead of its previous target and the UK deadline. The company has also announced a new commitment to helping its customers be net zero by 2050.
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The reduction in Centrica’s own emissions (scope 1 and 2) and those of its customers (scope 3) align with science-based targets and the actions required to limit warming to 1.5°C.
With the heating of homes and businesses being the single largest contributor to carbon emissions in the UK, Centrica is already taking action to support customers with a
range of solutions and services to reduce their emissions. The company is set to launch a hybrid heat pump trial in the coming months with customers, an opportunity to prove the role hybrid heat pumps can play in decarbonising homes. A paid-for proposition for air source heat pumps is also being developed. The company is also working with customers to accelerate electric vehicle adoption and has upskilled many of its Smart Energy Experts to fit EV charging points. Centrica’s ambition is to install 23,000 EV charging points this year across its residential, small and large business customer base. As part of its commitment to be a net zero business by 2045, the company has brought forward its commitment to electrifying its
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12,000-strong fleet of vehicles from 2030 to 2025 and last week made the largest commercial battery electric vehicle order in the UK to date.
Centrica will share more details on plans to deliver against its new climate goals when it publishes a Climate Transition Plan later this year.
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Industry alliance urges Government to rethink Green Homes Grant cut
ctuate UK, the new alliance of eight engineering services organisations, has urged Government to reconsider its intention to remove funding from the £2bn Green Homes Grants (GHG)
“Such drastic reduction of funding sends out all the wrong signals, especially as the Government aims to put the green economy at the heart of plans for rebuilding the economy” says Julia Evans from Actuate UK member BSRIA.
Actuate UK members have expressed their disappointment that only £320m of the original £2bn would now be made available through the GHG voucher scheme.
“Initiatives to encourage the take up of low carbon solutions need to be long term and consistent,” adds Hywel Davies, from Actuate UK member CIBSE. “A short-term stimulus does not create the market shift required to achieve net zero targets, including the development of a suitably skilled workforce in key sectors. To invest in the necessary recruitment, training and technologies, businesses must know that Government means business, and is in this for the long haul.”
Evans added “We suggest that next week’s Budget is a huge opportunity for Government to underline its commitment to building a green economy and recovery, especially ahead of the UK’s hosting COP26, and that this should include ongoing commitment to green residential retrofit”.
Actuate UK proposes that Government: 1. Review the operation of the GHG, in consultation with the sector groups that would implement the energy efficient and low carbon measures it is supporting and
2. Release all the original GHG funding, ensuring that the full £2 billion is available until March 2022 and act swiftly to resolve the administration problems with the scheme based on current feedback. 3. Consider a requirement for GHG voucher to be used to create a ‘green building passport’ to give homeowners a plan from the medium to long term. 4. Develop a robust pathway so that the GHG voucher scheme can support the transition into future long- term support.
5. Reduce VAT to zero on all energy efficiency-related products.
Government has characterised the GHG initiative, set up in 2020 to improve the energy efficiency of 600,000 homes in England by issuing vouchers to carry out home improvements, as a “short-term stimulus”. Grants could be used up to the end of the 2020-21 financial year, although work could carry on until March 2022. A recent report from the Environmental Audit Committee (EAC) noted that vouchers were being issued at a ‘snail’s pace’ - only 20,000 issued at the last count, just 5% of the available vouchers. However, there is clearly consumer demand and once administrative issues are resolved and the timescale extended, supply chains will have the full confidence to develop and support the scheme.
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Commenting on today’s Budget, Association for Consultancy and Engineering (ACE) CEO Hannah Vickers said: The Chancellor today rightly combined ongoing support for business with steps to ensure we ‘build back better’. The built environment sector is the engine room of the economy and the freeports and city deals announcements are exactly the sort of holistic, low carbon regeneration programmes we need to simultaneously create jobs, level up opportunities and hit net zero. But the Infrastructure Bank must also play its part. The Treasury’s scoping document setting out how the Bank will operate is encouraging, taking on board the Construction Leadership Council’s Regeneration proposals.
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Commenting on budget announcement, Neil Sherreard, director at Beard, said: “Extra investment in training is certainly something to welcome as we look ahead to the future of our industry. “The investment in training today will shape the sector of tomorrow and it’s always been an important part of Beard’s culture to help bring on the skills necessary through our own training schemes.
“The increase in apprentice payments will help to strengthen those schemes and the idea of the ‘flexi-job’ apprenticeship is an interesting development. If apprentices are able to move around different employers within the sector they will certainly get a deeper insight into how different firms operate. “But it does present some questions around who is ultimately responsible for their development as some firms may feel that investment is wasted if they decide to go elsewhere. “However, in the short term, the introduction of the ‘super deduction’ tax incentive for companies will be a significant development for construction firms’ finances.
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Commenting on Today’s Budget, FIS CEO, Iain McIlwee stated: Who’d have thought twelve months ago, the first Budget after leaving the EU would have no mention of Brexit! Against the backdrop of COVID and uncertainty that still surrounds it did start to provide a vision for Building our Future Economy. When we look to investment in people, the doubling of incentives to support businesses taking on apprenticeships is welcome, but it does not fully reflect the value that business delivers through apprentice schemes. It would have been good to hear this go further and guarantee that the Apprenticeship Levy is ringfenced and adapted to support further investment in the infrastructure needed to deliver quality apprenticeships. The focus on additional support for traineeships is also encouraging and we will be looking to ensure this is targeted at creating jobs in our sector.
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Read the latest at:
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