The U.K. can have a world-leading energy system by correctly spending £500 million ($718 million), according to a new paper by Scottish Renewables on Wednesday.
The report identified six key innovation areas, and urged the U.K. government to cooperate with industry officials to help guide investment towards reaching a low-carbon, low-cost energy sector over a five year period as part of the Department of Energy and Climate Change Innovation Program.
Wave and tidal energy are high on the priority list outlined by Scottish Renewables, who is calling for half of all energy used in Scotland to come from renewables by 2030.
Secondly, floating offshore wind plants are considered important as it could 'open huge areas of the world’s deepest oceans to green energy generation.'
Storage technologies which can enable increased renewables capacity by storing electricity at times of low demand and fight against carbon emissions are also among the important areas that need attention, the report shows.
Additionally, 'thinking about the U.K.'s heat, transport and electricity sectors as one system will allow the country to be smarter in the way power is used and drive efficiencies, increase security and reduce costs,' the report highlights.
Lastly, the network system needs to be improved, Scottish Renewables states.
“Now new technologies like wave energy and storage have the potential to revolutionize the way we produce energy,' Hannah Smith, policy officer at Scottish Renewables, said.
By Zeynep Beyza Kilic
Anadolu Agency
zeynep.karabay@aa.com.tr