DECC Slammed For Lack Of Ambition

Industry leaders have hailed the publication of a raft of energy consultations and policy announcements as "good news" for renewables, however the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has been criticised for a lack of ambition on wind energy and called upon to deliver energy market reform.

Responding to the Department's Annual Energy Statement, which set out 32 actions to accelerate the energy system to 2050, and the Pathways to 2050 analysis (see this NewEnergyFocus.com story), RenewableUK has claimed that they are positive steps for renewables and the UK as a whole.

Chief executive of the trade body, Maria McCaffery, said: "This statement is good news for renewables and the UK as a whole - the 2050 pathways work shows that wind and renewables will be at the heart of the UK's energy mix for the long term.

"The government's new figures on cost impact show beyond a shadow of a doubt that wind is not only good for the environment and jobs but for consumers too."

However, she added that the Energy Statement could be undermined by a lack of ambition on wind energy and stressed the need of working to achieve the 2020 targets.

She said: "We welcome the Statement's 40 year vision for a low carbon energy future but it is decisions taken in the next few years which will decide whether Britain gets a green job bonanza. The good work represented by this Energy Statement risks being undermined by a lack of ambition on offshore wind delivery.

"We want to work with the government to make sure that we tackle the obstacles we face in the delivery of the 2020 targets such as aviation objections, slow planning decisions and a lack of grid connections. The Statement today makes it easier to do just that."

DECC has also been urged to prioritise energy and electricity market reform, with the chief executive of the National Grid, Steve Holliday, claiming the right conditions must be created for financial investment.

Mr Holliday said: "The Annual Energy Statement will help bring clarity on energy policy. With National Grid alone expecting to invest £22bn over the next five years, three quarters of that in the UK, investors need certainty to fund the country's ambitious low carbon energy revolution."

He added: "The government's priorities must now be around energy market reform to create the right conditions for financial investment and around planning to ensure that infrastructure build is not delayed with slow planning decisions."

These points were echoed by business lobbying organisation, the CBI, whose director of business environment, Dr Neil Bentley, said: "Now businesses need quick decisions on electricity market reform, and certainty that the planning regime will not be changed in a way that deters investment.

"These will be crucial to securing the £150bn of private sector investment needed to turn the government's strategy into reality. Cost effectiveness must underpin all policy decisions to ensure we maintain industrial competitiveness."

The government's 2050 Pathways analysis, which shows that an 80% cut in emissions is "ambitious but achievable" and compatible with maintaining security of energy supplies, has also been welcomed.

Chief executive of the Energy Technologies Institute (ETI), Dr David Clarke, said: "The ETI welcomes the analysis in this 2050 Pathways Analysis report, which highlights some of the major challenges facing the UK in developing an affordable, secure, low carbon energy system that will help meet the UK's legally binding targets for reducing greenhouse gases for 2020 and 2050.

"The scale of re-development highlighted in some of the DECC report scenarios, the Calculator, and in our own work, in supporting the UK's economic growth, means substantial and sustainable development of UK supply chain capability and capacity is needed. We will play a key part in putting this in place."

He added that the analysis should help to inform and stimulate a wide ranging discussion about the assumptions and issues it covers.

"Engaging the public and industry in identifying the necessary solutions to meet the 2050 targets will become a key part of successfully delivering a low carbon economy for the UK", he said.