All RDAs across England are closing by March 2012
(see transition and closure section).
With our resources reducing steadily, this page has not been recently updated and the information below may not be current.
If in doubt, please contact us directly.
Renewable energy
With high levels of wave, tidal, wind and solar energy and a
good climate for growing biomass crops, we have long recognised the
potential for renewable energy to deliver substantial economic
benefits to South West England. It can also help tackle
climate change by developing a low carbon economy.
The renewable energy industry in South West England currently
accounts for more than 300 businesses and organisations working
across the sector, employing more than 2,900 people and
contributing an estimated £215 million to the economy annually.
Employment in this sector has grown at 37 per cent per annum over
the last three years. Ninety per cent of the region's companies in
the sector expect to see further increases in demand for their
services over the next few years, driven in part by a regional
renewable electricity target of 20 per cent by 2020. The
drive towards the EU's ambitious 2020 renewable energy targets will
also have an impact.
For more information, you can download the DTZ GVA survey
and The Road to 2020 - an analysis of renewable energy options in
the South West of England (Sept 2008).
We were the first region in the UK to set up a dedicated
sustainable energy agency, Regen SW, to which we continue to
provide core funding. As a regional development agency we have
concentrated our efforts on supporting emerging technologies that
offer significant opportunities for growth and new, highly-skilled
jobs but may need support to realise their ambitions.
Our areas of focus include:
Marine energy remains a strong focus for our region. Our
pioneering work on projects such as Wave Hub and the Peninsula Research Institute for
Marine Renewable Energy (PRIMaRE) have led to us being
designated as a Low Carbon Economic Area for marine energy, as part
of the UK's Low Carbon Industrial Strategy.