Scottish Renewables Annual Conference 2019 Programme

The UN’s IPCC warnings have motivated some governments around the world to accelerate action to limit warming and avoid climate breakdown. But with Trump in the White House, China’s dependence on coal, Europe’s continued reliance on Russian gas and Brexit occupying minds at home, are we doing enough to decarbonise? And how can Scotland capitalise on the moral imperative to act and to show leadership before it’s too late?

Welcome & Chair
Claire Mack, Chief Executive, Scottish Renewables

Sponsor Welcome
Susie Lind, Head of Legal and Company Secretary, EDF Renewables

Ministerial Address
Paul Wheelhouse MSP, Minister for Energy, Connectivity and the Islands, Scottish Government

Q & A

Speakers
Chris Stark, Chief Executive, Committee on Climate Change 
Anthony Legg, Director - Head of Power & Utilities, EY

Q & A

Brexit will produce the most fundamental rearrangement of our society in half a century. With environmental targets driven by Europe, the threat of a Brexit brain drain, and renewables reeling from support mechanisms in a constant state of flux, we ask: How will the green energy sector fare post-March 29th? And are there any opportunities for renewables?

Chair
Nick Sharpe, Director of Communications, Scottish Renewables

Speakers
Michael Moore, Senior Advisor, PricewaterhouseCoopers 
Ayesha Hazarika MBE, political commentator, comedian and former Special Advisor to Prime Minister Gordon Brown

Q & A

As desires for energy services change, what will demand and supply look like in 5 or 10 years? How can renewables grow and compete in a world of smart tech and even smarter consumers? How will our heating, cooling and transport needs be met in the years ahead and how can we ensure renewables are the fuel? What are the innovation challenges and opportunities for our sector, and how can we ensure long-term, patient investment in the right technologies to reach their full potential and maintain our globally competitive strengths?

Chair
Trisha McAuley OBE, Independent Consumer Expert

Speakers
Mark Taylor, Deputy Director of Innovation, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, UK Government
Dr Matthew Hannon, Senior Lecturer, Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship, University of Strathclyde Business School 

Panellists
Xavier Mamo, Research and Development Director, EDF Energy 
Anita Breslin, Head of Commercial, Vattenfall Heat 
Alan Gooding, Executive Director, Smarter Grid Solutions

Q & A

All delegates are invited to attend a networking drinks reception and dinner at the end of Day 1. Wine, beer, soft drinks and a hot networking buffet will be served. 

Welcome: Claire Mack, Chief Executive, Scottish Renewables

Revenue support – from ROCs to CfDs and FiTs to RHI - has allowed renewables to compete with carbon-based incumbents to deliver affordable energy, jobs and carbon reductions. While all energy is subsidised, the last few years have seen big reductions in UK support for renewables, with major impacts on the sector. This session looks at the cost of decarbonising energy and the economic interventions in the market, how these are changing and what the future of investment in clean energy needs to look like. How will a more market-led system deliver to meet both increasing demand and ever more critical climate change goals?  Can Government afford to lose its role in the energy system when so much is at stake?

Welcome
Claire Mack, Chief Executive, Scottish Renewables

Chair
Fabrice Leveque, Senior Policy Manager, Scottish Renewables

Speakers
Vicky Dawe, Deputy Director – Renewable Electricity Support Schemes, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, UK Government
Sue Kearns, Deputy Director – Consumers and Low Carbon Division, Scottish Government
Neal Rafferty, Head of Utilities, Markets and Network Policy Unit, Scottish Government
Graham Meeks, Head of Policy, Green Investment Group

Panellists
Chris Milne, Chief Financial Officer, Orbital Marine Power
Andy Yuill, Senior Renewable Heat Manager, Natural Power

Q & A

To meet Scotland’s 2030 energy targets and evolving 2050 ambitions, and to meet the changing needs of consumers, our heat, transport and power networks are likely to see revolutionary change. These changes need planning and management, investment and possibly new financial models to create the smart, localised systems we want and need to see. Do the rise of electric vehicles and heat pumps mean electrification is a foregone conclusion? What meaningful role could hydrogen play in meeting needs, and do the costs stack up for it to be produced from renewables? What grid upgrades will be needed, and how far can we go with district heating networks? And how can industry capture revenue from providing system services?

Chair
Hannah Smith, Senior Policy Manager, Scottish Renewables

Speakers
Professor Martin Cave, Chair, Ofgem
Marcus Stewart, Energy Analysis Senior Manager, National Grid SO
Professor Ian Hunter, Hatsopoulos Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology 

Panellists
Phil Steele, Product Manager, Octopus Energy
Felicity Jones, Partner, Everoze
Andrew Bissell, Chief Executive Officer, Sunamp

Q & A

Chair
Claire Mack, Chief Executive, Scottish Renewables

Speaker
Professor Graeme Roy, Director, Fraser of Allander Institute, University of Strathclyde Business School

Q & A

Scotland’s infrastructure and local places are already in the process of transformational change, with EV charging, heat networks and greater decentralisation of energy generation and storage all becoming features of our communities, cities and countryside. With new planning legislation coming into force and a major national policy review kicking off, 2019 is a critical year for setting the course for our low-carbon places and green energy infrastructure both on and offshore. This session will look at what the new provisions in the Planning Bill going through parliament will mean for communities, developers and investors, what the priorities of the National Planning Framework should be, and how Scotland can turn the low-carbon vision into a reality on the ground around our coasts for both urban for both urban and rural places across the country. 

Chair
Jenny Hogan, Deputy Chief Executive, Scottish Renewables

Speakers
Tony Rose, Director, Infrastructure Commission for Scotland
Stuart Black, Director of Development and Infrastructure, The Highland Council
Jennifer Ballantyne, Partner, Pinsent Masons

Panellists
David Bell, Director – Planning & Development, JLL
Eleri Davies, Head of Consents UK, innogy Renewables UK

Q & A