§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on renewable sources of energy and on the funding which has been made available for such projects since 1997. [28018]
§ Mr. WilsonIn the four-year period 1997–2001, the Department of Trade and Industry provided a total of £61.1 million for the support of research and development in renewable energy. Over the same period, total indirect support for renewable energy provided through the Fossil Fuel Levy was £374.8 million.
For the three-year period 2001–04, provision for research and development in renewable energy is £80.6 million, and for the newly introduced capital grants for renewables projects, £191 million. It is estimated that indirect support to be provided through the renewables obligation, planned to come into effect on 1 April 2002, could total £687 million over its first two years of operation. Some continuing support through the Fossil Fuel Levy is also expected.
Looking ahead, introducing the new renewables obligation, exempting renewables from the Climate Change Levy and protecting existing non-fossil fuel obligation (NFFO) contracts will together create a long-term market incentive for renewables expected to be worth over £1 billion per year by 2010.
§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much of Britain's energy requirements are found in(a) renewable and (b) nonrenewable sources of energy. [28017]
§ Ms HewittRenewable energy sources provided 1.3 per cent. of the United Kingdom's total primary energy requirements in 2000, and 2.8 per cent. of the electricity generated in the UK.