UK's Renewable Energy Strategy in confusion.
The Government's ambition for Britain to become a global leader in renewable energy suffered a major setback last night when Iberdrola Renewables, the world’s biggest investor in wind power announced that it was slashing its british investment programme.
Xabier Viteri, chief of Iberdrola Renewables, whose Spanish parent owns ScottishPower, blamed the economic crisis for the move but added that problems in Britain could force his company to consider investing elsewhere.The announcement comes less than two months after ministers backed a string of huge gas-fired power stations, prompting concern that the Government cannot fulfil its promise of a green energy revolution.
Last week Shell stopped building wind and solar power stations worldwide. Pelamis, a leading wave power pioneer, has owned up to technical as well as financial problems. And since last November BP has cutting back on its commitments to wind and other renewables schemes, including a £3 billion project for 341 turbines in the Thames Estuary, and questions have been raised over the future of npower’s £2.2 billion Gwint y Mor farm off the Welsh coast.
Iberdrola Renewables’ decision to cut its investment in Britain by more than 40%, or £300 million — enough to build a wind farm powering 200,000 homes — is the latest obstacle to Gordon Brown’s target of generating 35 % of the country’s electricity from renewable sources by 2020. Lifting it to that level from the current 5% would cost an estimated £100 billion. But wind energy investments have collapsed as funding dries up in the credit crunch and the price of oil, gas and coal has fallen. Delays obtaining access to the national grid and planning permission have compounded the industry’s woes.
“We are way off the pace,” Jonathon Porritt, the head of the Sustainable Development Commission, said. “The UK has talked about this for years, but the Government now has very little time to get this together. People just do not consider the UK to be a good place to invest in renewables.” Duncan Ayling, of the British Wind Energy Association, said: “We need strategic leadership from the highest levels . . . We are only going to do this if the Government is brave enough to tackle these problems head on.” He called for the formation of a Cabinet-level sub-committee to lead the industry’s development.
Despite Gordon Brown’s ambitious talk of a renewables revolution, progress has been slow in Britain, which remains a relative backwater in terms of renewable energy investment.
Iberdrola now operates 9 gigawatts of renewable energy worldwide. Most of its projects are in Spain and America where subsidies, ample land and lax planning systems make investing in large-scale wind projects commercially attractive. On some days Spain generates 30% of its electricity from wind. In Britain financing problems have been amplified by a series of domestic troubles that have led to delays — in particular securing planning permission and access to grid connections.
The Government’s solution has been to place greater emphasis on offshore wind projects. However, these are much more expensive to build and the technology is relatively unproven on a commercial scale.
The Crown Estate, which owns Britain’s seabed, has opened up its waters to the development of huge wind projects but there are doubts about how many of these will be built without fresh subsidies.
The Government remains hesitant to pass draconian legislation that risks forcing up consumers’ energy bills. The outlay to build renewable energy schemes is far higher than dirtier coal or gas-fired power stations.
A spokesman for the Department for Energy and Climate Change said: “We take very seriously the concerns that some developers have had for some wind developments and we are looking to see if there is any further action that we could take in response.”
The latest announcement will come as an embarrassment to Ed Miliband, the Energy Secretary, who this week described opposition to wind farms as “socially unacceptable . . . like not wearing your seatbelt or driving past a zebra crossing”.
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British are "bored" with Climate Change
A new energy report suggests that British people are less environmentally conscious than they were five years ago.
4 out of 10 britons take no action at all to reduce their household carbon emissions, and twice as many people are now "bored" by talk of climate change as in 2005. Experts warn that green fatigue is one of the major reasons as to why there are more cars on the roads, more planes in the sky and no reductions in the mountain of packaging waste. The report reveals that too few people are making an effort to reduce their household CO2 emissions and environmentalists believe the recession is further undermining public commitment.
The report, by market researchers Mintel, shows that many of Britain's 26 million homes fail to make simple adjustments such as switching off lights, turning down thermostats, and switching off appliances rather than leaving them on standby. The findings also reveal that people are less willing to spend money on energy-efficient appliances than they were five years ago. Analysts believe the recession together with a backlash against "extreme" environmentalist pressure has reduced people's enthusiasm to combat climate change.
The report also found that resistance to saving the planet was greater among men; one in four said they think there is too much concern over the environment, compared with one in six women.
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More information on the 2016 definition of "Zero Carbon".
Housing Minister, Grant Shapps announced additional information about the new definition of "Zero Carbon".
The Government plans to investigate setting up a community energy fund which will be used to pay for district heating and renewable energy schemes.
Developers who pay into the fund will not have to install onsite renewables or microgeneration equipment. Many developers have welcomed the flexibility of paying into a fund rather than grappling with renewables on each site.
However, the full definition of 'zero-carbon' has once again been delayed. This is despite a pre-election promise to get the definition of zero carbon finalised “within weeks” of getting into office.
The new Government Housing Minister has recently announced that the coalition will review the level of on-site renewables required - before publishing the final definition of the standard, which all new homes will have to reach after 2016.
In the announcement, the Minister also re-affirmed his commitment to all new homes being zero-carbon from 2016 and confirmed the introduction of the ‘Fabric Energy Efficiency Standard' which requires a minimum standard in relation to insulation levels and air tightness and thermal bridging in buildings.
Zero carbon is required of all Code for Sustainable Homes level six homes. Clarification of what zero carbon will mean is still to be decided.
If you require assistance with your Code for Sustainable Homes level requirements, contact Ecowise - we are a fully accredited Code for Sustainable Homes assessment organisation.
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Pilot Tidal Energy Scheme for North Wales Coast
Conwy County Borough Council has backed plans for a pilot tidal energy scheme off the North Wales Coast.
The £150 million scheme at Llanddulas in North Wales would provide a testing facility for turbine designers and manufacturers, and assess the environmental impact of turbines.
The project was given approval by the council as part of a strategic regeneration strategy for the Conwy coast, prepared by consultant Capita Symonds.
Paul Terry, Capita Symonds, said: "Tidal power will play a key role in providing a sustainable energy source for future generations. The North Wales coast is an ideal place for such a scheme as it’s blessed with a good tidal range and suitable ocean depth." He added that the project could also help protect the coast from rising sea levels, storm surges and coastal erosion.
The regeneration strategy also calls for seven new visitor centres costing £30m should be built at key locations stretching from Conwy to Rhuddlan. But North Wales Tourism chairman Chris Jackson raised doubts over whether the proposals could realistically be funded in the current economic climate. The council’s approval now means that Capita Symonds will seek funding for feasibility studies and investigations to develop a business case for the scheme.
