Renewable energy boosts North West

A £2.3m Low Carbon Market Development Programme has been launched by the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) to boost renewable energy technologies in the North West of England.

Delivered by Envirolink Northwest, the investment is aimed at helping businesses overcome barriers in the adoption of renewable energy generation. These include poor public perception of renewable-energy technologies, planning restrictions, difficulties in financing projects and issues with connection to the electricity network.

The programme will be funded with £1m from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and £1.3m from NWDA. The organisations will run the programme for three years, providing technical support to stakeholders in the renewable energy market with regards to planning, finance and network connection.

They will also provide advocacy and support services for renewable technologies that have been highlighted as having significant opportunities for the region. These include onshore and offshore wind, microgeneration and energy from waste.

The programme is expected to increase the market for renewable energy and stimulate the growth of the renewable energy sector in the North West. The NWDA expects the programme to create 43 jobs, support 185 business, encourage £1.8m in private-sector investment and save two million tonnes of CO₂ over three years.