Island Centre for Net Zero (ICNZ)

Timescale: 2023 – 2033
Funding: £16 million UK Government investment and £500,000 Scottish Government investment through the Islands Growth Deal.

The challenge

Our islands (Shetland, Outer Hebrides and Orkney) have a shared ambition to spearhead decarbonisation, leading Scotland towards its 2045 net zero target and the rest of the UK by 2050. However, each island has its own diverse and somewhat complex economies due to the combination of remoteness, natural resources, climate and economic heritage.

ICNZ overview

The Islands Centre for Net Zero (ICNZ) is a pan-island distributed innovation centre that will support Orkney, Shetland and the Outer Hebrides to become lighthouse communities in the energy transition. The centre will support the exploration, trialling and acceleration of solutions to decarbonisation that could have replicability worldwide. See project website for more details: www.icnz.org

ICNZ objectives

ICNZ aims to coordinate efforts to:

• Accelerate a just decarbonisation across the three island groups
• Create green jobs and transition in the islands
• Generate new enterprise and revenue streams
• Support Islands Deal projects’ achievement of decarbonisation goals
• Develop internationally recognised islands transition expertise and capabilities, transferable beyond Orkney, Shetland, and Outer Hebrides.

Partners

ICNZ was developed by an islands based consortium led by the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) with partners Heriot Watt University, Aquatera and Community Energy Scotland and the three Island’ Councils - Orkney Islands Council, Shetland Islands Council and Comhairle nan Eilean Siar.

EMEC role

EMEC is leading the project and is leading four work streams:

• Project management: Coordinating delivery of activities, overall risk management, monitoring KPI’s, financial administration and reporting to the Islands Deal Board.
• Demonstration zones: Establishing a platform of test and demonstration zones where new technologies can be trialed in the islands which will accelerate the pathway for energy transition solutions to reach market.
• Island accelerators: Helping provide financial and technical resources to accelerate transition project development.
• Communication and knowledge exchange: Establishing and leading external communications, stakeholder engagement and knowledge exchange.

The team is also supporting partners with various ICNZ related initiatives, including:

• Community Energy Scotland‘s Island Community Action Network (iCAN) which meets online monthly for themed presentations and discussion on decarbonisation and climate activities. Meetings have looked at community transport, local waste reduction, the Rural Energy Hubs project and community climate action planning with the Carbon Neutral Islands project.
• Aquatera are developing a data exchange and carbon calculation tool to address the lack of accurate island specific data for understanding, benchmarking and tracking carbon usage.
• The IsleAI project is creating a platform to help identify areas affected by fuel poverty.
• Rural Energy Hubs which is developing the Brae Rural Energy Hub in Shetland, due to open in summer 2025, to provide information and practical solutions to inspire and support communities to reduce carbon emissions and energy costs. The warm centre includes an innovative mix of co-working spaces, a café, rapid charging facilities, a car club and e-bike hire.
• Two new Innovate UK funded projects – Electric Orkney and SeaChange – exploring decarbonisation and electrification solutions in maritime.

Expressions of interest

Decarbonisation projects drive our efforts to net zero islands. We are looking to collaborate with projects that transform our islands into global leaders in sustainability and innovation. From help with external funding opportunities to technical expertise, we’re ready to help you bring your ideas to life. We welcome organisations of all types, including SMEs, not-for-profits, and public-sector groups, working in, or keen to support decarbonisation in, the Orkney Islands, Outer Hebrides, or Shetland Islands. Projects with potential for replication beyond these regions are highly encouraged.

Get in touch with us to discuss your ideas – info@emec.org.uk / 01856 852207 – or submit an expression of interest.

Related news

• May 2025: Orkney Household Energy Survey highlights growing energy costs and interest in renewables
• Dec 2024: ICNZ newsletter
• May 2024: ICNZ newsletter
• Nov 2023: Islands Centre for Net Zero to host first open day
• Feb 2023: Orkney study wins Net Zero Living funding
• Mar 2021: Islands Growth Deal to release £335 million investment