Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department has issued guidance to industrial producers on how they can effectively decarbonise their operations.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Since July last year, we have provided a host of support and guidance to industry. This has included: guidance to SMEs through our Business Energy Advice Service (BEAS) pilot and to local clusters through our Local Industrial Decarbonisation Plans scheme; funding for further studies and projects supporting industrial decarbonisation under the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund; and providing updates to the market on our hydrogen and carbon capture business models and support, as well as confirming £21.7bn funding to launch the UK’s first carbon capture sites.
To give longer-term confidence for industry to decarbonise, we will publish an Industrial Decarbonisation Strategy ensuring growth opportunities are captured in tandem with emissions reductions.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of making biomethane eligible for the UK Emissions Trading Scheme.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government recognises biomethane as a practical and cost-effective way of contributing to net zero greenhouse gas emissions. The UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) applies a zero emissions factor to combustion of biomethane where supplied directly to ETS installations. Where biomethane is injected into the gas grid, there is not currently a mechanism to ensure biomethane is accounted for separately.
As outlined in the future policy framework for biomethane production call for evidence, the Government is working with the ETS Authority to consider whether the ETS could account for biomethane injected into the gas grid and will provide an update on this in due course.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to review compliance costs related to net-zero regulations.
Answered by Kerry McCarthy - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Regulation plays a critical role in supporting the low-carbon technologies of the future, whether in electric vehicles or sustainable aviation fuel. DESNZ is taking steps to review the compliance costs of regulation as part of the Government’s Regulation Action Plan. For example, the Department has started a review of the energy and emissions reporting landscape to identify opportunities to reduce undue administrative burden, and has launched its Review of Ofgem.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when he plans to make a decision on the selection of new emitter projects assigned to Track-2 carbon capture, usage and storage clusters.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
CCUS requires significant resources, and it is right that it is considered within the Spending Review. We continue to engage at both working and ministerial level with all future projects, including Track-2, and further decisions for future CCUS deployment will be taken in due course.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an estimate of the cost to industrial producers of decarbonising their operations.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Carbon savings through fuel switching from fossil fuels to low carbon alternatives and improvements in resource and energy efficiency are needed for the industrial sector to transition to net zero. We are developing a suite of policies to enable industry to deliver these savings. As we do so, we are closely engaging with industry, both with sector trade associations as well as with manufacturers directly, to identify and understand the challenges, barriers and costs of their decarbonisation pathways.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what guidance his Department has issued on the methods of decarbonising home heating that cause the least disruption.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Guidance on recommended home energy efficiency improvements is devolved. In Scotland, constituents can visit the Home Energy Scotland webpage for advice.
The Warm Homes Plan will help people find ways to save money on energy bills and transform our ageing building stock into comfortable, low-carbon homes that are fit for the future. We will upgrade up to 5 million homes across the country by accelerating the installation of efficient new technologies like heat pumps, solar, batteries and insulation.
We will partner with combined authorities and local and devolved governments to roll out this plan. Further details on the Warm Homes Plan will be set out in due course.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of setting a national target for the production of biomethane.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
In February 2024, the Department issued a Call for Evidence (CfE) on a future policy framework for biomethane production, which included consideration of a national target.
We are considering the responses to the CfE as part of policy development and will set out further details in due course.”
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March 2025 to Question 39646 on Photovoltaics: Import Controls, whether the Government considers Great British Energy to be a public sector contracting authority for the purposes of the Procurement Act 2023.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Yes, Great British Energy (GBE) will be considered a “public authority”, and thereby a “contracting authority”, where it is not operating on a commercial basis.
Under the Procurement Act 2023, GBE can reject bids and terminate contracts with suppliers that are known to use forced labour themselves or anywhere in their supply chain. In addition, GBE will utilise the debarment list to ensure that suppliers with unethical supply chains cannot participate in procurement or be awarded contracts. The company will appoint a senior individual in the organisation to lead on ethical supply chains and modern slavery.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether any renewable energy compliance regulations are under review by his Department.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The government has inherited a fragmented consumer protection framework for installation of measures that improve the energy efficiency of homes. This will be reviewed and reforms brought forward in the Warm Homes Plan, so that people can be confident of the quality of upgrading and insulating homes, which could help save money on their bills.
Asked by: Andrew Bowie (Conservative - West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, which city GB Energy executive staff will be based.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Dan McGrail, the interim CEO, will work from Great British Energy’s (GBE) Aberdeen HQ, and we have recently launched the recruitment campaign for the permanent CEO, which is also advertised as Aberdeen-based.
The first recruitment campaigns for the senior team have been launched, and of the three permanent Director-level positions advertised up to this point, two will be based in Aberdeen.