§ Mr. BoswellTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he expects to receive the conclusions of his review of renewable energy. [54030]
§ Mr. Battle[holding answer 31 July 1998]: I am currently considering options for the future development of renewables alongside other ongoing reviews. I expect to make an announcement later this year. In the meantime I announced the fifth Non-Fossil Fuel Obligation (NFFO-5) Renewables Order in England and Wales on 24 September 1998. 261 projects comprising 1,177 MW of capacity have been contracted under NFFO-5.
At 30 June 1998, 235 projects, comprising 570 MW (declared net capacity) of renewables generating capacity had been commissioned under the four Non-Fossil Fuel Obligation (NFFO) Orders for England and Wales, two Scottish Renewables Obligation (SRO) Orders and two Northern Ireland NFFO (NI-NFFO) Orders.
Mr. Gareth R. ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much was spent on research into renewable energy technologies in each of the last five years. [55282]
§ Mr. BattleSpend under the DTI New and Renewable Energy Programme, including research, development, 1043W dissemination and demonstration in each of the last five years (covering expenditure agreed before 1 May 1997) is shown in the table.
£ million Year 1993–94 25.2 1994–95 19.1 1995–96 18.1 1996–97 114.8 1997–98 110.9 1 These figures allow for the payment and recovery of VAT Since coming into office, I have reversed the planned cuts in the overall programme budget set by the previous Government, increasing provision for 1998–99 by £2 million to £11.1 million (net). Beyond 1998–99 expenditure will depend on the outcome of the current policy review.
EPSRC commitment, through the General Engineering and Engineering for Infrastructure, the Environment and Healthcare Programmes, by financial year, for research into renewable and clean electricity generation is shown in the table.
£ million Year 1993–94 1.576 1994–95 0.506 1995–96 1.935 1996–97 2.338 1997–98 3.114 The figures for both the DTI New and Renewable Energy Programme and EPSRC include research into fuel cells—considered to be a clean generation technology.
Mr. Gareth R. ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans he has to commission research into renewable energy technologies using the extra funding announced for the research councils in the Comprehensive Spending Review. [55283]
§ Mr. BattleThe current New and Renewable Energy Policy Review, which is considering the need for further research into renewable energy technologies, is taking account of the outcome of the Comprehensive Spending Review.
The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) is currently developing a new managed programme in "Renewables and New Energy Technologies". The programme is taking account of the progress of the Government's current New and Renewable Energy Policy Review. It is likely to cover fuel cells, photovoltaics, energy storage and recovery, and research into other renewable energy sources. The programme is due to be launched in 1999.