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<p>The Clean Growth Strategy sets out our ambition to enable business consumers to
reduce their energy usage by improving energy efficiency by at least 20% by 2030,
potentially reducing carbon emissions by 22MtCO<sub>2</sub>e over the fifth Carbon
Budget. We are developing a package of measures to support businesses to deliver this
level of ambition and will respond to a Call for Evidence published last year, ‘Helping
businesses improve the way they use energy’ by the summer.</p><p> </p><p>Regarding
deploying private sustainable energy supplies the Government has been supporting the
installation of low carbon and renewable heating for businesses, charities and public
bodies through the Non-domestic Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) since 2011. The scheme
aims to bridge the gap between the cost of fossil fuel and low carbon heating technologies
by offering a financial incentive and has over 19,100 participants as of December
2018.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>In addition, the Government’s sustained support for clean
energy has helped produce dramatic falls in the costs of renewable technology. For
example, the cost of solar cells has fallen by 80 per cent since 2008. Support for
solar comes directly from people's bills, so when costs come down, so should support.
We have therefore taken steps to control the costs of support schemes, and subsidy-free
deployment of solar PV may be a viable option for businesses. Our Industrial Strategy
sets out how we want to make sure that the UK continues to reap the benefits from
the transition to a low carbon economy.</p>
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