RESEARCH COUNCILS UK ENERGY PROGRAMME: ENERGY STRATEGY FELLOWSHIP

c02f27d0-638e-47ff-b12a-517203c09381

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EPSRC
EPSRC
EPSRC
EPSRC
EPSRC

£9,383,955

March 31, 2012

March 31, 2017

This work has two principal aims: a) to develop a roadmap that will help the Research Councils and others to plan their research activities in ways that will contribute to the achievement of the UK's energy policy goals; and b) to conduct a programme of research that will assess how effectively different countries conduct their energy research and development (R&D) activities in different technology areas with a view to learning lessons for the more successful execution of policy.

The roadmap will consist of a top-level document which will act as a bridge between higher level energy strategies and more specific R&D plans for individual technologies. The aim is to improve the coherence of energy policy on the one hand and energy research activities on the other. The top-level document will be supplemented by web-based roadmaps for individual technology areas such as carbon capture and storage or different forms of renewable energy. Demand-side technologies, for example for transport and buildings, will also be covered. Given the interplay between technology and human behaviour, especially on the demand side, social scientists as well as scientists and engineers will be involved. The roadmaps will address both technological needs and needs for training and capacity-building. The roadmaps will be produced through interviews with policymakers and R&D funders and through a mixture of facilitated technical workshops and strategic workshops engaging a wider range of stakeholders.

The first task in the research programme is to map out "systems of innovation" for different energy technologies in different countries. We intend to cover a small number of EU countries, the US and China. The mapping will cover institutions and their roles, networks and research capacity. The task will be carried out through documentary analysis and interviews in the relevant countries. We will also look at systems of innovation internationally, for example through education and training, and the activities of multinational companies.

The second task will be to develop and analyse measures for the effectiveness of R&D activities in different systems of innovation. Many countries intend to achieve fundamental transitions in their energy systems, for example by moving to low-carbon technologies. We will draw on a new branch of innovation theory, "transitions theory", to develop measures of effectiveness.

Finally, we will review hypotheses and findings from the analysis of the effectiveness of R&D activities with experts and draw conclusions about how the success of energy R&D programmes and their contributions to energy policy can be improved.

Potential Impact:
The impact of the Fellowship activity falls into two parts. However, given that the research programme is closely linked to the roadmap activity, there is considerable overlap.

The main contribution of the roadmap development will be to promote a greater degree of coherence between energy policy-making with a short-medium term time perspective, and energy R&D with a longer term perspective. Given that the UK has binding legal requirements affecting the energy sector out to 2050 (the 80% greenhouse gas reduction target), and technology and policies as they currently stand will not by themselves allow that target to be reached, aligning research and development activities with policy needs will be essential. In addition, there is a need to ensure that the Research Council's investment in basic and applied research is aligned with applied research, development and demonstration (RD&D) supported by other organisations operating closer to market deployment. This will meet the recommendation emerging from the EPSRC's International Review of Energy that weaknesses in taking research through to deployable commercial technologies be addressed. The DECC Strategy and Evidence Group, the Technology Strategy Board, the Energy Technologies Institute and the Research Councils themselves are all potential beneficiaries.

Thus, the roadmap should contribute towards evidence-based policy-making and, specifically, the development of energy and energy research policies. Since environmental pressures, and climate change in particular, are major drivers of energy policy, the roadmap should also contribute indirectly to environmental sustainability and impact reduction. The business sector will be involved in roadmap development and we have engaged with the public-private Energy Research Partnership in preparing the proposal. There could also be indirect contributions to the exploitation of scientific knowledge and the performance of both public and private sector organisations, plus a contribution to the enhancement of the research capacity, knowledge and skills of businesses. The workplan includes a set of engagement activities with likely beneficiaries at the end of the initial roadmap development process.

Those benefitting from the roadmap would also benefit from the subsequent research programme. However, given the international nature of the research programme, there are additional beneficiaries. We have engaged with the FCO Science and Innovation network which will both support and benefit from the systematic intentional comparisons of key countries. The work is also relevant to those involved in international technology co-operation at DECC and the development of EU Framework Programme activities. We will also engage with BIS as many of the innovation insights may be applicable beyond the energy domain. International bodies such as the International Energy Agency and the European Commission may also benefit. The Advisory Group that we will establish for the research programme will engage a range of these potential beneficiaries to ensure a two-way flow of information.