The EIUG’s main point is that access to adequate electricity grid infrastructure represents a major constraint for industry to decarbonise and Government to reach Net Zero. It is likely many of the submissions to this call for evidence have been submitted by renewable generators, however, the EIUG believes that it is crucial to recognise the impact of grid connection issues on the demand side too. New or upgraded transmission or distribution network connections are required to enable industrial users to deploy a range of technologies, such as electrification, hydrogen and CCUS, critical for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in industrial and manufacturing sectors. The UK risks that companies decide to put their investments in industrial decarbonisation in other countries because the network operators cannot provide the connection in time.
The EIUG would like to draw the committee’s attention to a briefing note from the Industrial Decarbonisation Research & Innovation Centre (IDRC) about grid constraints and industrial decarbonisation. It states that “Access to adequate electricity grid infrastructure currently represents a major constraint on UK Net Zero efforts. While the prevailing discussion to date has focused on delays to connecting large scale renewable projects, it is crucial to recognise the impact of grid connection issues on the demand side, where new or upgraded grid connections are required to enable industrial users to deploy a range of technologies critical for reducing fossil fuel use, and therefore greenhouse gas emissions, in industrial and manufacturing sectors”