Community News Archive
Skills crisis for renewables
Institute of Physics
18 October 2005
Skills crisis could thwart Government target on renewables
The UK lacks the necessary skills to achieve the Government’s target of producing 10 per cent of our electricity from renewable energy sources by 2010, according to an independent report published today (18 October 2005) by the Institute of Physics.
Only 3.6 percent of the UK’s electricity was generated from renewable sources in 2004. In the 2003 energy White Paper, the Government indicated that renewables have a vital role to play in reducing carbon dioxide emissions and set a target to generate 10 per cent of the UK’s electricity from renewables by 2010.
The report “The Role of Physics in Renewable Energy RD&D” by Judith Bates and Nikolas Hill of Future Energy Solutions, part of AEA Environment, highlights the UK’s lack of general technical skills as well as more specialist skills, a major factor which will hamper Britain’s ability to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and create a sustainable mix of clean, safe energy.
According to the report, improving and developing renewable-energy technologies requires major advances in a wide variety of research areas as well as contributions from scientists and engineers from many disciplines. It also says that physics has a vital role to play in developing some of the most promising technologies, raising concerns over the falling number of physics graduates opting to pursue a career in science and engineering-related careers.
“A solution to this problem would be to estimate the future skills and educational needs, from R&D through to applied engineering, and make an effort to ensure these skills are provided” says co-author Judith Bates.
Peter Main, director of education and science at the Institute of Physics, said: “Solutions to many of the most important issues we face – global warming, energy generation, crime and terrorism - rely on the development of new technologies and innovative scientific approaches. This report shows how important physics is to creating clean, safe renewable energy sources and helping to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and global warming. It is vital that we support UK physics and attract more students to study physics and go on to pursue a career in areas such as energy generation.”
The report also highlights the fact that there are very few post-graduate opportunities in the development of renewable energy technologies or fuel cells. According to the report, the difficulty in obtaining funding for interdisciplinary or multi-disciplinary research topics is preventing many from pursuing research in this area. It calls for a more flexible approach to funding for research in this field, and for a clear indication from Government of the importance of investing in this area of research.
The report surveys existing renewable-energy technologies and also looks at new technologies being developed in the UK. It reveals that the UK could be a world-leader in two important areas: photovoltaic energy and wave or tidal energy. In both these areas the UK has a number of universities with significant research capability. “Ensuring these strengths are developed” says Judith Bates, “could bring substantial benefits for the UK, both in terms of enabling deployment of these technologies and reducing carbon dioxide emissions, and in terms of financial benefits from export earnings as these technologies are deployed globally.”
Robert Kirby-Harris, chief executive of the Institute of Physics said: “The Institute of Physics believes that the UK needs a secure, clean and safe supply of electricity, generated from a mix of sources which clearly includes the maximum achievable contribution from renewables. This report shows that the huge promise of renewables will only be realized if there is sufficient investment in research and development in this field and also in attracting more students into essential subjects such as physics. A simple, clearer system of funding linked to more post-graduate and research opportunities in renewable energy research is urgently needed to kick-start this process.”