UK New Package of Climate Support Announced at COP27
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has announced support for energy transition, climate financing and forest and nature preservation. Hydrogen Industry Leaders looks at what this means for the hydrogen industry.
The UK continues to deliver on its key funding commitments, spending £11.6 billion on international climate finance. UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak highlighted at COP27 that the UK Government is recognising the existential threat climate change is already posing around the world.
It has been revealed that the government will commit to triple funding for climate adaptation as part of that budget, from £500m in 2019 to £1.5bn in 2025.
Using Clean Hydrogen To Accerlate The Energy Transition Is Essential
In particular, the UK Government has said it is focused on partnering with the private sector to facilitate green innovation and energy transition, at home and around the world. It is hoped that this will also help the drive for net zero, reducing the global demand for oil and gas.
Supporting this, the Prime Minister has announced a further £65.5 million for the Clean Energy Innovation Facility, which provides grants to researchers and scientists in developing countries to accelerate the development of clean technology.
Since the BEIS-led fund was launched in 2019 it has supported the creation of biomass-powered refrigeration in India, prototype lithium-ion batteries in Nigeria and clean hydrogen-based fuels for steel production in Morocco, among other innovations.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “The world came together in Glasgow with one last chance to create a plan that would limit global temperature rises to 1.5 degrees. The question today is: can we summon the collective will to deliver on those promises?
“I believe we can. By honouring the pledges we made in Glasgow, we can turn our struggle against climate change into a global mission for new jobs and clean growth.”
And we can bequeath our children a greener planet and a more prosperous future. That’s a legacy we could be proud of.
Projects Including Solar Parks And Energy Storage Innovations Will Be Supported
As well as supporting innovation, the UK is working with G7 allies to provide countries with reliable, transparent sources of sustainable infrastructure financing.
The projects include new and expanded solar and geothermal power plants in Kenya backed by British International Investment, UK export financing for Nairobi’s ground-breaking Railway City and a major Public-private Partnership on the $3 billion Grand High Falls Dam hydropower project led by UK firm GBM Engineering.
New financial support for Egypt’s flagship COP27 initiative, the ‘Nexus on Food, Water and Energy’ will be seen. The funding will develop projects including solar parks and energy storage innovations are expected to mobilise billions in private sector finance.
Funding To Conserve And Restore Our Wildlife Is Being Provided
Following this, the Prime Minister has also hosted an event to launch the Forests and Climate Leaders’ Partnership. Initially comprising 20 countries, the new group will meet twice yearly to track commitments on the landmark Forests and Land Use declaration at COP26, which aims to halt and reverse forest loss by 2030.
To support the forest agenda, the UK is committing £90 million for conservation in the Congo Basin, a vital tropical rainforest which is home to some 10,000 species of tropical plants and several endangered species, including forest elephants, chimpanzees, and mountain gorillas.
Rishi Sunak has also confirmed £65 million in funding for the Nature, People and Climate Investment Fund, which supports indigenous and local forest communities, and new financing for Treevive, which is working to conserve and restore two million hectares of tropical forest.
