Decentralised Energy Development: a Study Examining Its Potential to Drive Economic Regeneration in the UK
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Decentralised Energy Development: A study examining its potential to drive economic regeneration in the UK John Edward Carr M.Phil March 2018 Keele University Word Count 37,575 Decentralised Energy Development: A study examining its potential to drive economic regeneration in the UK Decentralised Energy Development: A study examining its potential to drive economic regeneration in the UK Abstract Following the 2008 financial crash the UK Government, through the Local Enterprise Partnership model has been driving major economic regeneration in localised economies for high value job creation, uplifting skills and infrastructure investment. LEPs are the prime vehicles to identify and deliver their own programmes to gain increased economic growth through targeted and localised support. The Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire LEP having a below average performing business base, developed a unique “Powerhouse Central” proposal for its regeneration funding submission into Whitehall. The proposals centred on delivering decentralised energy infrastructure in the form of Stoke-on-Trent district heat network (DHN), and the Keele University Smart Energy Network Demonstrator (SEND). The DHN and SEND are complementary projects, the DHN utilising off the shelf technology to de-risk the project and encourage private investment models to be applied to UK DHN pipeline projects, whilst the Keele SEND allows dynamic smart network technologies to be tested and trialled, both from the hardware and software perspective but also from the social interaction dimension in an idealised small town sized community. Decentralised energy using localised energy resource assets give increased levels of supply security to business, public services and residential populations something that is becoming more difficult with the existing large-scale generation system. The DHN and the SEND gives the opportunity for localised supply chain diversification providing a key element of the LEP’s economic regeneration commitments; this observational study has researched and examined drivers, conflicts and barriers to deploying the DHN and SEND projects specifically regarding the deployment of business support strategies and programmes to drive supply chain diversification and innovation into the decentralised energy opportunity. It is apparent that technology and finance are not the key barriers to decentralised energy supply chain growth but relate to the conflict and non-aligned politics pursing national and local agendas. i Decentralised Energy Development: A study examining its potential to drive economic regeneration in the UK ii Decentralised Energy Development: A study examining its potential to drive economic regeneration in the UK Acknowledgements I wish to offer my sincere thanks to Dr Sharon George for her inspiration and guidance throughout this project especially through the difficult times, when combining the study with running an engineering business was a difficult balance. I wish to express my gratitude to my wife Sandra and my children Beth and Sam for their support and patience over the last few years. iii Decentralised Energy Development: A study examining its potential to drive economic regeneration in the UK iv Decentralised Energy Development: A study examining its potential to drive economic regeneration in the UK Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................................................... i Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................... iii Figures ................................................................................................................................................... vii Table of Abbreviations ........................................................................................................................... ix 1. Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 – Objectives .................................................................................................................................. 1 1.2 – Background to research ............................................................................................................. 3 2. Literature Review ............................................................................................................................. 15 2.1 - Economic Regeneration – Barriers & Drivers for LEPs ............................................................. 15 2.2 - Energy Opportunities ................................................................................................................ 23 2.2.1 - Wind Potential ....................................................................................................................... 26 2.2.2 - Solar ....................................................................................................................................... 27 2.2.3 - Biomass and Biogas ............................................................................................................... 28 2.2.4 - Waste Material ...................................................................................................................... 30 2.2.5 - Geothermal Energy ................................................................................................................ 31 2.3 - What is decentralised energy? ................................................................................................. 35 3. Methodology .................................................................................................................................... 39 3.1 - Research approach ................................................................................................................... 39 3.1.1 - Observational Case Study ...................................................................................................... 40 3.1.2 - Comparison with European cases ......................................................................................... 41 3.1.3 - The Energy Trilemma ............................................................................................................. 42 3.2 - Research Envelope.................................................................................................................... 43 3.2.1 - Ethical and approval considerations...................................................................................... 44 4. Policy and Technology – Development and Drivers ....................................................................... 45 4.1 - Energy and climate change policy development in the EU ...................................................... 45 4.2 - UK sectorial changes: Industrial to Finance and Service and back again ................................. 51 4.3 - Local Enterprise Partnerships ................................................................................................... 56 4.3.1 - Move from RDA to LEP ...................................................................................................... 56 4.3.2 - UK Issues – LEP/ LA / UK Government and the Energy Agenda ........................................ 65 4.3.3 - Stoke & Staffordshire LEP – Decentralised Energy Focus .................................................. 68 4.3.2.1 - Opportunity – Stoke & Staffordshire LEP policy and governance .................................. 71 v Decentralised Energy Development: A study examining its potential to drive economic regeneration in the UK 4.3.2.2 - Decentralised Energy: Workforce Skill Shortage ............................................................ 76 4.3.2.3 - Decentralised Energy: Supply Chain Awareness ............................................................. 77 4.4 - Aims and policies of regional economic regeneration strategies ............................................. 79 4.4.1 - Case Study 1: Sweden – A move to District Heat ............................................................... 80 4.4.2 - Case Study 2: Munich – a city wide power & network vision ............................................ 85 4.5 - Economic and regulatory frameworks driving “Decentralised Energy” ................................... 91 4.6 - Decentralised Energy – Barriers, Drivers and deployment ....................................................... 95 4.7 - Decentralised Energy Technology – Stoke-on-Trent LEP Options ............................................ 98 4.7.1 - Unconventional Gas – Shale Gas, Coal Mine Methane and Coal Bed Methane ................ 99 4.7.2 - Minewater Geothermal ................................................................................................... 103 4.7.3 - Deep Geothermal Heat ...................................................................................................