Annual Conference 2021 Programme

This is the year where the world steps-up to the challenge of climate change.

Scotland has the technologies, the resources and the skills to meet this challenge head on. This small country is the home of world-leading developers of renewable energy projects across wind, hydro, tidal, solar and more, as well as new energy technologies, like battery storage and hydrogen. We are already creating our own future energy system, and Scotland has a lot to offer the world.

In this session you will learn:

• The scale of the challenge that faces us and how the solutions are likely to roll out
• How the wellbeing and energy transition agendas are intrinsically linked – and where business fits in
• How much renewable energy the world will need to achieve our climate goals

Welcome and Chair
Claire Mack, Chief Executive, Scottish Renewables

Headline Sponsor Welcome
San Johal, Chief People Officer, EDF Renewables

Ministerial Address
Nicola Sturgeon MSP, First Minister of Scotland

Speakers
Dr Andy Kerr, UK and Ireland lead, EIT Climate-KIC
Rachel McEwan, Chief Sustainability Officer, SSE
Vicky Dawe, Deputy Director, Renewable Delivery, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Q & A 

With the publication of its long-awaited Energy White Paper the UK Government has committed to ending our reliance on fossil fuels by 2050 and transitioning to an energy system powered by clean, green energy.

The Climate Change Committee has set out the path we need to get there in its Sixth Carbon Budget and stated that the cost of this transition will be less than 1% of GDP, thanks to the tumbling price of renewable electricity. Politicians have talked the talk, now it is time to walk the walk.

In this session you will learn:

• What support is being offered to businesses and consumers to make the transition real
• What the political experts are saying on what more needs to be done
• How the politics of COP26 could affect deployment of all renewable technologies – for better or worse

Chair
James Murray, Editor-in-Chief, BusinessGreen

Panellists
Graham McMillan, Founder, First Avenue Consulting
Ermenegilda Boccabella, Energy and Climate Adviser, Global Counsel
Emma Pinchbeck, Chief Executive Officer, Energy UK 
Melanie Grimmitt, Partner – Global Head of Energy, Pinsent Masons

Q & A

Latest research shows 80% of the UK public are concerned about climate change, and the impact of this rising stat is being felt in the marketplace as customer interest in the sustainability of supply chains and manufacturing and energy supply continues to grow.

Beyond the renewable energy sector more and more businesses are embracing renewable energy and other sustainability measures as they step up to the challenge of climate change and meet the expectations of their customers.

 In this session you will learn

• The role that renewable energy is playing in the decarbonisation of business – and the challenges our industry needs to overcome if we’re to mainstream green attitudes in the boardroom
• The diversity of approaches being adopted by businesses from all sectors
• The opportunities this presents to the renewables industry

Chair 
Claire Mack, Chief Executive, Scottish Renewables

Panellists
Dr Warren Bowden, Innovation and Sustainability Director, Scottish Leather Group
Morag Garden, Head of Sustainability and Innovation, Scotch Whisky Association
Danielle Kelly, Director of Strategy and Sales Scotland, STV
Aaron Falls, Group Strategy Director, Alexander Dennis 

Q & A

Day 1 closing remarks
Claire Mack, Chief Executive, Scottish Renewables

In the past 12 months hydrogen has raced up the agenda. The Climate Change Committee has told us H2 will be essential for achieving net-zero and the Scottish Government’s Hydrogen Policy Statement highlights renewable energy as a key source of green hydrogen.

Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium are all eyeing Scotland as a possible source of green hydrogen to meet their own energy needs in what could become a £25 billion industry supporting over 300,000 jobs. The opportunities are vast, but action is needed now. 

In this session you will learn

• The key steps which are already being taken to make Scotland a green hydrogen powerhouse
• Hydrogen’s role in solving the renewables / energy storage / grid balancing conundrum
• The opportunities this presents for the Scottish renewable energy industry

Welcome
Adam Morrison, Chair, Scottish Renewables  

Chair
Duncan Clark, Head of Region UK, Ørsted

Speakers
Clare Lavelle, Associate Director, Energy Consultancy Leader – North, Arup
Dr Graham Cooley, Chief Executive Officer, ITM Power
Dr Kerry-Ann Adamson, Project Manager, Advisian

Q & A

A net-zero energy system based on renewable energy is within reach, but only if we can unlock the investment we need to get there.

Investor interest in renewable energy projects has never been higher, and Scotland must now position itself as the place to invest. A supportive policy context which inspires investor confidence is essential if we are to continue to develop our world lead in clean energy.

In this session you will learn

• The potential size of the investment opportunity – and the players who’re already involved
• The expert’s view on what it will take to make Scotland the place to invest
• What steps industry needs to take to inspire investor confidence and attract finance

Chair
Claire Mack, Chief Executive, Scottish Renewables

Speaker
Angus McCrone, Chief Editor, BloombergNEF 

Q & A 

Achieving net-zero will double our electricity consumption by 2050. There is no doubt that renewable energy can meet this need; we have the technology, we have the natural resources and we have the know-how. But this can only be achieved if we can get our clean, green electrons to market.

Grid constraints, access charging and storage still represent major bumps in the road to net-zero. The way we generate electricity has changed, and the way we link generators to consumers must now catch up.

 In this session you will learn

• The unique challenges the distribution network will face to prepare the grid for net-zero
• The changing role of the regulator in a net-zero energy system
• How grid charging must evolve to support net-zero
• How storage will continue to grow in importance

Chair
Morag Watson, Director of Policy, Scottish Renewables

Speakers
Iain Divers, Head of RIIO-ED2, SP Energy Networks 
Nicola Percival, Senior Regulatory Affairs Manager, RWE Renewables
Ed Birkett, Senior Policy Fellow, Policy Exchange
Richard Gow, Policy & Government Relations Manager, Drax

Q & A

Since the Climate Emergency was declared the number of renewables projects being consented has gone down, not up.

Meanwhile the NPF4 Position Statement published in late 2020 makes the commitment that “We will have to rebalance the planning system so that climate change is a guiding principle for all plans and decisions”.

Aligning policy and practice in our planning system will be essential to achieving net-zero. In this session industry experts will share their views on how this can be achieved.

In this session you will learn

• What it will take to achieve the CCC’s recommendation of 30 GW of onshore wind by 2035
• What we can learn from other planning systems around the world
• Where the blockages are plus radical ideas for fixing them

Chair
Kirsty MacArthur, Director, MacArthur Green 

Speakers
Darren Cuming, Senior Planning and Consent Manager, EDF Renewables
Kristian Henningsen, Head of Public Affairs Nordics, UK & Ireland, Vestas
Sarah-Jane McArthur, Partner, Brodies LLP

Q & A

Closing remarks
Morag Watson, Director of Policy, Scottish Renewables