The Prime Minister David Cameron has addressed delegates at the Clean Energy Ministerial outlining the UK’s vision to make renewable technologies more economically sustainable.

Climate change minister Greg Barker today announced the allocation of up to £60m ($96m) to support the development of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology in emerging markets.

The Renewable Energy Association (REA) is calling on chancellor George Osbourne to attend the Clean Energy Ministerial following news that the UK has slipped back into recession.

Energy secretary Edward Davey has told a world renewable energy gathering that the UK is ‘at the leading edge’ of clean energy technology.

Britain could be a world-leader in smart grid technology, creating substantial domestic investment and 10,000 highly skilled jobs, according to a report written by Ernst & Young for the SmartGrid GB Group. It says that countries across the globe are competing to develop smart grids which could unlock the full benefits of innovations such as renewables, microgeneration and electric vehicles. These intelligent networks would also give consumers a greater understanding of their energy consumption and contribute towards carbon reductions. Entitled ‘Smart Grid: A race worth winning’, the report was commissioned by the 23 leading companies who make up Smart Grid GB. It says that using smart technologies to help upgrade the national grid will bring major economic benefits by 2050. Using conventional technologies to upgrade the UK’s ageing electricity distribution network is predicted to cost £46bn – but this could be reduced by around £19bn by incorporating smart grid. Despite the potential benefits, the report warns that the UK risks losing out on world leader status in developing the sophisticated technology as there is ‘a decreasing time window to do so’ with South Korea, China and the USA all making significant progress. Robert McNamara, manager SmartGrid GB said:  “The findings of the report are clear. There is a strong business case and we should not delay in developing a smart grid. If Britain is willing to take a global leadership position there are potentially enormous benefits. But if we want to be a serious competitor in the global smart grid race we must prioritise laying the relevant ground work in order for its accelerated development to take place. “The UK cannot afford to take a ‘wait and see’ approach,” McNamara added: “Failure to deploy a smart grid will hamper development of clean tech industries and push up domestic electric costs. It could also potentially mean that we fail to meet our carbon emission targets.”

Climate change minister Greg Barker is to launch a report by the Renewable Energy Association (REA) revealing that the UK’s renewable sector supports 110,000 jobs.

Time is fast running out for installers to make their views known on the proposed changes to the Feed-in Tariff (FiT) scheme outlined by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC).

The Green Deal for non-domestic buildings will not launch at the same time as it is introduced to households, according to GreenWise.

New research has come to light concluding that although difficult, most uncertainties surrounding carbon capture and storage (CSS) technologies can be successfully resolved.

Reports are circulating that mandatory elements of Green Deal may now be made voluntary due to opposition at high levels of government.

The Renewables Roadshow will return this Autumn promising more demonstrations, presentation and energy-efficient technologies.

REC’s PV modules have been ranked first by the Photon Laboratory 2011 performance tests.