Boris Johnson has promised that the Government will take back control of energy prices with its new long-awaited energy strategy which aims to make 95 per cent of electricity low carbon within the next eight years. Ministers are promising 'cleaner and more affordable energy' to be made in this country by boosting wind, new nuclear, solar and hydrogen.
Boris Johnson said the strategy, including new nuclear and offshore wind plans, would reduce the UK’s dependence on foreign sources of energy. This follows on from recently reported worldwide concern about the reliance on Russian oil and gas since the invasion of Ukraine.
Under the Government’s plans, a new body, Great British Nuclear, will be launched to strengthen the UK’s nuclear capacity with the hope of up to 24 gigawatts (GW) of electricity by 2050 coming from the source of power, 25 per cent of the projected electricity demand. It is hoped the focus on nuclear will deliver up to eight reactors, equivalent to one reactor a year instead of one a decade.
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Prime Minister Mr Johnson said: “We’re setting out bold plans to scale up and accelerate affordable, clean and secure energy made in Britain, for Britain, from new nuclear to offshore wind, in the decade ahead. This will reduce our dependence on power sources exposed to volatile international prices we cannot control, so we can enjoy greater energy self-sufficiency with cheaper bills.”
The rocketing energy bills faced by families have been cause, in part, by a post-pandemic rise in demand for gas, with lower levels of production. Families across the nation have felt the pinch, with energy price caps rising from April 1, as Labour says the proposed plan would do 'nothing to help the rising energy costs faced by households.'
On offshore wind, the plan outlines the ambition of producing up to 50GW of energy by 2030, which the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis) said would be more than enough to power every home in the UK. Some 5GW should come from floating offshore wind in deeper seas and planning reforms will slash approval times for new wind farms from four years to one year.
Several ministers have aired views backing the development of new oil and gas, but not onshore wind, which is one of the cheapest forms of electricity, along with solar. Brexit opportunities minister Jacob Rees-Mogg downplayed the earthquake risks from fracking and suggested “every last drop” of oil should be extracted from the North Sea, while Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said he did not favour a vast increase in onshore wind farms as he said they “can create something of an eyesore”.
The Government said it would be 'consulting on developing partnerships with a limited number of supportive communities who wish to host new onshore wind infrastructure in return for guaranteed lower energy bills'. A £30m competition to manufacture heat pumps is also to be launched, with hopes to increase solar capacity with a consultation of the rules for solar projects.
Plus, the Government aims to double its goal of low carbon hydrogen production to 10GW by 2030, with at least half of that coming from green hydrogen. Meanwhile, on oil and gas, a new licensing round for new North Sea oil and gas projects is planned for the autumn to cover the 'nearer term'.
Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said: “We have seen record-high gas prices around the world. We need to protect ourselves from price spikes in the future by accelerating our move towards cleaner, cheaper, home-grown energy.
"The simple truth is that the more cheap, clean power we generate within our borders, the less exposed we will be to eye-watering fossil fuel prices set by global markets we can’t control. Scaling up cheap renewables and new nuclear, while maximising North Sea production, is the best and only way to ensure our energy independence over the coming years.”
The plan was welcomed by offshore wind firm Orsted, trade association Hydrogen UK, Shell and EDF, among others. But Ed Miliband, Labour’s shadow climate change and net-zero secretary, said: “The Government’s energy relaunch is in disarray. This relaunch will do nothing for the millions of families now facing an energy bills crisis.
“No reversal of the ban on onshore wind and not a penny more on energy efficiency. These decisions will force households to pay hundreds of pounds more for their energy bills and keep the UK dependent on imported gas for longer" as Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said the plans were “utterly hopeless”.
