NDA-funded project delivers low-carbon success across North Wales
The Egni Economic Impact Project, a project funded by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA), has delivered a range of successful outcomes for the low-carbon sector across North Wales.
The project funded STEM outreach programmes with schools
M-SParc’s Egni team, based on Anglesey, has worked with a range of partners throughout the three-year programme to deliver impactful projects that support businesses, drive investment and educate the next generation.
This has included:
- £120,000 in grants provided to 15 companies on low-carbon and sustainability projects
- low-carbon reviews provided to 12 companies
- STEM outreach programmes with schools, and community engagement events
- a study on how digital can support Wales’s net zero climate aims
- a project to review of the financing of decarbonisation opportunities
- developed an accredited carbon literacy course for North Wales SMEs
The Egni team was created in 2021 with a £360,000 grant from the NDA’s Socio-Economic Fund. The team is now permanently established - with four full-time team members, four associate members and two interns - and will continue to meet the needs of the low-carbon sector as it develops in the future.
Jamie Reed, Director of Socio-Economics at the NDA, said:
The creation of Egni in M-SParc has brought about a step-change in activity in the low carbon sector in North Wales. The project has secured over £7m in inward investment into the area, and generated carbon savings through interventions such as increased solar panels, efficiency measures and EV chargers.
Furthermore, 4,000 hours of expert business support has been provided and more than 3,000 students engaged in STEM activities through the outreach programme.
The NDA is committed to supporting our site communities and are thrilled that our initial project funding has led to a permanent team that will deliver long-term and far-reaching change across North Wales.
Nuclear Restoration Services – a subsidiary company of the NDA which is responsible for safely decommissioning the first generation nuclear and research sites across the UK – has now committed a further £389,000 in a second-phase funding package to the Egni project, with further details to follow in early 2025.
The delivery of the project was led by Dr Debbie Jones, M-SParc’s Low Carbon Innovation Manager. She said:
We’re delighted by the work we’ve been able to deliver across North Wales. There are massive opportunities within the low carbon sector in the region and it’s important we harness those and help deliver economic and environmental impact for the region.
The Egni team have been able to support businesses to decarbonise, help companies access supply chain opportunities through our energy clusters and develop skills programmes and internships to highlight the opportunities that there are in North Wales for the next generation.
I am excited with what we’ve achieved so far in the Egni team, and I’m looking forward to seeing how we can take this forward as part of the transition to Net Zero in North Wales and beyond!
Over the last five years, the NDA group has invested £60 million in projects that enable permanent and sustainable change in its site communities, leveraging many millions more from partners.
The NDA is tasked with decommissioning the UK’s earliest nuclear sites safely, securely and sustainably. Its mission is unique in that it’s required to have regard for the impact of its activities on communities living near its sites.
For more information about the Egni Economic Impact Project, contact M-SParc via the website or email egni@m-sparc.com