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 UK smart grid benefits underestimated says trade body
30-05-2012
Smart Grid GB has released the most up-to-date research on the benefits of a smart grid for the UK. Its findings suggest the benefits of the smart grid are underestimated in the UK.
Their report is co-authored by financial services firm Ernst and Young and 23 other industry companies.
Its most interesting findings include the estimate that if £46bn were spent on a smart grid up to 2050, the UK could make savings of up to £19bn. Even with a lower level of decarbonisation, £10bn-worth of savings can be expected.
In addition to this, the industry could be worth £13bn to the UK economy and could generate 9000 jobs through to the 2030s.
The report carries an urgent message: lead the global smart grid industry now or lose the opportunity to lead it. Being published by an industry body analyzing its own industry, the report is optimistic about the smart grid’s potential in the UK and the UK’s competitive potential. It identifies direct benefits such as intellectual property rights and foreign direct investment and the benefits to secondary industries such as EVs, distributed generation and renewables.
Yet the report’s recommendations such as investment in skills and creating a stable policy environment are all reasonable. As is its warning that competition from other countries also developing smart grids means the UK’s window of opportunity is short if it is really committed to leading this emerging industry. |
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