15th July 2024
The UK Government has appointed Chris Stark to head the new Mission Control initiative tasked with delivering clean power across the UK by 2030, and this week’s announcement of £7.3bn of additional funding for the new National Wealth Fund will help unlock private investment in new technologies such as hydrogen and green steel.
Chris Stark delivered the inaugural Hydrogen Scotland Burns Week Lecture earlier this year on 22nd January at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, using this opportunity to highlight the challenges of energy system decarbonisation and the need to achieve net zero power. Previously chief executive of the Climate Change Committee, and former Director of Energy and Climate Change in the Scottish Government, Chris Stark will bring extensive expertise working with the energy sector to remove barriers and achieve the clean power mission on the country’s path to net zero.
Chris Stark said: ‘Tackling the climate crisis and accelerating the transition to clean power is the country’s biggest challenge, and its greatest opportunity. By taking action now, we can put the UK at the forefront of the global race to net zero – driving down our carbon emissions but also cutting bills for households. It is a privilege to head up this work alongside the country’s top energy experts who will make this mission a reality.’
This new Mission Control initiative will be the first of its kind in the UK government – with a focus on accelerating the transition away from volatile fossil fuel markets toward clean power, improving Britain’s energy security and cutting energy costs – solving the Energy Trilemma.
Mission Control will be a one-stop shop, bringing together a top team of industry experts and officials to troubleshoot, negotiate and clear the way for energy projects. Mission Control will work with key energy companies and organisations including the regulator Ofgem, the National Grid and the Electricity System Operator to remove obstacles and identify and resolve issues as they arise. This will speed up the connection of new power infrastructure to the grid, and cleaner, cheaper power to people’s homes and businesses.
The announcement this week of £7.3bn of additional funding for the new National Wealth Fund will help unlock private investment in new technologies such as hydrogen and green steel. Chancellor Rachel Reeves and the Business Secretary, Jonathan Reynolds have instructed officials to immediately begin work to align the UK Infrastructure Bank and the British Business Bank under a new National Wealth Fund that will invest in the new industries of the future.
Under the Government’s new plans, the National Wealth Fund will bring together key institutions and a compelling proposition for investors. This will mobilise billions more in private investment and generate a return for taxpayers. £7.3bn of additional funding will be allocated through the UK Infrastructure Bank so investments can start being made immediately, focusing on further priority sectors and catalysing private investment at an even greater scale.
This £7.3bn funding is in addition to existing UKIB funding. As part of the National Wealth Fund reforms will be made to the British Business Bank, which is overseen by the Department for Business and Trade, to ensure it can mobilise the UK’s institutional capital and unlock billions of pounds of investment in the UK’s world-leading green and growth industries.