Our inaugural SHFCA Burns Week Lecture featuring Chris Stark, CEO of the Climate Change Committee, proceeded as planned on Monday 22nd January at the University of Strathclyde despite the travel disruption following Storm Isha which affected the whole of the UK. This is the ninth storm the UK has experienced since September, highlighting the importance of taking immediate action to mitigate climate change.
The inaugural SHFCA Burns Week Lecture with Chris Stark, CEO of the Climate Change Committee
Chris Stark began with slides to illustrate the rapidly changing global climate and remarking "A future I hope we never see: a 4-degree world". Chris then spoke about the critical role for hydrogen as long-term energy storage to provide responsive power for secure supply of zero-carbon electricity across the UK by 2035. Responsive power could require between 50 – 100 TWh per year of low carbon hydrogen, equivalent to between 1.5 and 3 million tonnes of hydrogen.
Chris highlighted the scale of transformation now required to achieve Net Zero, with the challenges we now face with decarbonisation of transport and heating. Chris concluded his talk with the challenge of meeting Scottish and UK Net Zero targets and the increasing importance of gaining public acceptance, closing with a remark that "Net Zero should really be framed as security for the UK".
Nigel Holmes, CEO of the Scottish Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association, commented that ‘Production of low carbon hydrogen to meet the UK’s responsive power demands would require significant scale-up of hydrogen production across the UK by 2035. This modelling by the CCC shows that much of this hydrogen could be produced by electrolysis to capture ‘surplus’ renewable electricity which could otherwise be lost.’
The discussion panel after the lecture included Professor Keith Bell, University of Strathclyde; Dr Jamie Speirs, Centre for Energy Policy at the University of Strathclyde; and Peter Jones of Scottish Power. The panel members provided comment and insights on issues raised by the lecture and together with Chris Stark answered a wide range of questions from the audience.
Chris Stark has been Chief Executive of the Climate Change Committee since April 2018. His previous role was Director of Energy and Climate Change in the Scottish Government, leading the development of Scotland’s approach to emissions reduction and the accompanying energy system transition. Chris has wide experience of economic policy-making, in the Scottish Government, HM Treasury and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. Chris will be taking up his new role with The Carbon Trust in April
SHFCA would like to thank Chris Stark for his comprehensive and compelling lecture. We are also grateful to our sponsor ScottishPower for their support and to the Centre for Energy Policy at the University of Strathclyde for hosting the event.
