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Capital Grants Scheme

The DTI’s Capital Grants Scheme funds a number of demonstration projects that help reduce the costs and risks involved in such developments, and to maximise the contribution to the Government’s target for renewable electricity supply within the UK.

A significant amount of funding for capital grants has already been allocated for:

• Offshore wind: three rounds of offshore wind grants totalling £117 million have already been allocated. The aim was to stimulate early development of a significant number of offshore wind farms. The scheme is now closed.
• Biomass: approximately £66 million has been provided to help encourage the efficient use of biomass, particularly energy crops, for energy production by stimulating the early deployment of biomass-fuelled heat and electricity-generation projects. Of this, the New Opportunities Fund provided approximately £33 million for energy crops power generation and around £3 million for small-scale biomass/combined heat and power projects.

The Government’s recent spending review brought total funding for new and renewable energy to approximately £500 million from 2002 to 2008. Following the review, the DTI is currently analysing the case for further funding of offshore wind and biomass.

A number of other areas have already received additional or new funding in light of the results of the spending review:

• Solar photovoltaics: funding under the Major PV Demonstration Programme has recently been increased by £6 million, taking total funding to £31 million. Visit DTI Solar PV Grants website for more details.
• The Clear Skies Programme: this programme provides grants for a number of technologies for domestic and community schemes. It has had its funding increased by £2.5 million to £12.5 million. Visit Clear Skies website for more details.