The Times article acknowledges that The government promised that communities in England would have a “definitive say” on whether projects were allowed to proceed, which is not the case in Scotland, where planning rules do not require developers to have such backing
Emily Gosden, Energy Editor
Dozens of onshore wind and solar farms could be built around Britain after ministers backed their construction to help to tackle climate change.
Boris Johnson’s government said it would offer financial support to new projects from next year, ending a block on subsidies imposed by David Cameron from 2016. The move follows sharp reductions in the cost of wind and solar power that experts say mean the projects should not add to energy bills.
The government legislated last year for Britain to cut its carbon emissions to “net zero” by 2050. Its climate advisers said this would need a quadrupling of low-carbon electricity sources such as wind and solar to power green energy, heating and transport systems.
Alok Sharma, the business and energy secretary, said: “Ending our contribution to climate change means making the UK a world leader in renewable energy. We are determined to do that in a way that works for everyone.”
The government promised that communities in England would have a “definitive say” on whether projects were allowed to proceed, which is not the case in Scotland, where planning rules do not require developers to have such backing. “It will remain the case that no English onshore wind project can proceed without the consent of the local community”, it said.
The Conservatives withdrew financial support for onshore projects after opposition within the party to their impact on the landscape and costs to consumers. Only one onshore wind farm was completed last year and solar development has slowed. Public support for renewable energies increased, with 79 per cent backing onshore wind and 85 per cent supporting solar energy in a government poll last year.
However, in a sign of nervousness in the Tory ranks, Mr Sharma’s comment was revised from an earlier draft leaked to industry, in which he said it was necessary to make “the most of every technology available, and that includes more onshore wind and solar projects”.
Britain has 2,400 onshore wind farms with more than 8,400 turbines, capable of generating up to 13.5 gigawatts of electricity at peak, providing enough electricity to supply 8.5 million homes, or about a tenth of the UK’s needs last year, according to Renewable UK, the wind industry body.
It estimates that there are 86 wind farms that have planning consent and meet other requirements to be eligible to compete for the new financial contracts, comprising about 1,000 turbines. Most of the projects are in Scotland with 11 in Wales and one in England. Britain also has more than 1,000 solar farms that can generate about 8.4 gigawatts of electricity at peak, according to Solar Media Ltd. Finlay Colville, head of research, estimated that 94 new projects generating 1.8 gigawatts of capacity could be eligible to compete for financing. Of these, 67 were in England, 15 in Scotland and 12 in Wales. The biggest developments were planned for the East Midlands.
Contracts offered will guarantee developers a fixed price for the electricity generated. An impact assessment published by the government last night said it expected projects to secure contracts at prices “below the average expected wholesale price for electricity”, and they could pay back more to consumers than they received in subsidies.
Keith Anderson, chief executive of Scottish Power, one of the biggest onshore wind developers, said: “Onshore wind is a crucial tool in tackling climate change — it’s cheap, it’s clean and it’s quick to build.”
John Sauven, the executive director of Greenpeace, said: “This is great news for anyone who pays an energy bill, and for our climate.”
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