After weeks of delay and late-night tussles, Boris Johnson has published his plan to wean Britain off Russian energy without collapsing our economy.
The Prime Minister has pledged to “produce vastly more hydrogen”, build “up to” one nuclear reactor per year, and “take advantage of Britain’s inexhaustible resources of wind and – yes – sunshine”.
The idea is to keep energy bills under control as we end Russian oil, coal and (eventually) gas imports due to the “abhorrent and illegal invasion of Ukraine ”.
But under pressure from warring Tories, Mr Johnson dropped key pledges on hilltop wind farms - and is set to plough more resources into North Sea oil.
He also announced no help for families’ soaring energy bills now - and nothing new for insulating homes.
The 7,494-word policy was still being worked out at the last minute and was published as a simple web page, with no time for fancy graphs or even a proper PDF document.
But the Tony Blair Institute said “expensive, slow and risky options [have been] backed over quick, cheap and popular ones”.
So what is actually in the energy strategy and what are the gaping holes he missed? Here’s what you need to know.
5 things the government has announced
‘Up to’ 8 nuclear reactors in 8 years
The document vows to reverse “decades” of short-sightedness, including under Tory governments, and “invest massively in nuclear power”.
It aims to take one “final investment decision” on nuclear - possibly a new site at Sizewell - by 2024 and another in the next Parliament, by 2029.
Between them these could lead to eight reactors by 2030, it’s claimed, because there can be more than one reactor at each power station.
These could be a mixture of large ‘gigawatt reactors’ and Small Modular Reactors - raising nuclear from 15% of our power now to 25% in 2050.
But there are big questions about funding and how realistic ‘one reactor a year’ actually is - more below.
It’s thought the “up to” eight new reactors would go on some of the eight sites already approved to host nuclear reactors.
These are Hinkley, Sizewell, Heysham, Hartlepool, Bradwell, Wylfa, Oldbury and Moorside - with Wylfa lined up for an imminent project.
After that, the government will “develop a strategy” that could identify new sites that’ve never hosted a nuclear plant before. But this seems a long way off.
New investment in North Sea oil - despite our green goals
The document pledges a new round of licences to launch this Autumn for oil and gas projects in the North Sea.
It claims there’s “no contradiction” between this and Britain’s pledge to reach Net Zero carbon emissions - which will be a “smooth transition, not immediate extinction”.
But Rebecca Newsom of Greenpeace UK said Tories are "dishing out rewards to vested interests in the nuclear and the oil and gas industries".
The document insists Britain will have “reduced our gas consumption by over 40% by 2030”.
And “by 2035, we will have decarbonised our electricity system, subject to security of supply”. That’s a get-out clause - it’s understood gas could still be used in some circumstances beyond 2035.
Meanwhile the strategy leaves the door open to fracking - currently banned thanks to the 2019 Tory manifesto - after Tory MPs urged a rethink.
But that door is only just open. It says while the government “remains open-minded”, the pause on fracking “continues to remain in place unless new evidence emerge”.
Lots of new offshore wind power
The strategy repeats Boris Johnson ’s dubious pledge to become “the Saudi Arabia of wind power” with it generating more than half our renewable energy by 2030.
That would be “up to” 50GW by 2030, including “up to” 5GW from massive floating wind turbines.
The government will cut the consent time down from four yers to one; strengthen policy statements; and review habitat assessments from late 2023 to ‘reduce reams of paperwork’ on protecting wildlife.
But again there are questions about cash.
Today’s plan highlights a £160m pot to kickstart work on floating wind turbines which Boris Johnson announced in the autumn.
The UK’s first floating wind farm alone, which has five turbines, cost more than that entire funding pot.
Energy firm Equinor spent 2billion Norwegian Kroner - equivalent to around £174m - on the Hywind Scotland plant 15 miles off the coast of Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, in 2017.
Its 830ft high floating turbines each weighs 12,000 tonnes and has a rotor diameter of 500ft - equivalent to three Nelson’s Columns stacked end to end.
A five-fold rise in solar power, with relaxed planning rules
There is currently 14GW of solar capacity in the UK but the cost of building it has dropped 85% in a decade, so the government wants a five-fold rise to 70GW by 2035.
For ground solar farms, ministers will consult on tearing up planning rules to tip more “in favour of development” on non-protected land. Communities would still get a say.
For rooftop solar panels, the government has vowed to “radically simplify” the planning process, launching a consultation on using “permitted development” rights.
This means if you want to put a solar panel on your roof, you could do it without having to submit a full-blown planning application.
The government is also “looking at” getting banks to offer low-cost finance on solar panels or energy efficiency for homes. But critics say it’s not enough - more below.
Hydrogen, tidal and geothermal power
The plan promises investment in hydrogen, tidal and geothermal power - but despite chatter about this for decades it’s pretty thin on details.
It simply says we will “aggressively explore renewable opportunities afforded by our geography and geology, including tidal and geothermal”.
Hydrogen - which could eventually replace gas in central heating for households who don’t get a heat pump - is a bit more concrete.
The plan vows to double the target for hydrogen production capacity by 2030, to 10GW. But that would be “subject to affordability and value for money”.
There would also be a hydrogen certification scheme by 2025, “to demonstrate high-grade British hydrogen for export and ensure any imported hydrogen meets the same high standards”.
The Tony Blair Institute claims the hydrogen strategy is “bizarre” because it would create “significant” new demand for natural gas in the production process.
… and the 5 gaping holes in the plan
Bottling Boris Johnson scrapped onshore wind targets
An early version of the document pledged 30GW of capacity from onshore wind by 2030 and 45GW by 2035 - up from 14GW now.
But despite hilltop wind turbines being much cheaper than ones in the sea, the final document drops this target - due to a Tory tussle over the “eyesore” machines.
The pledge is seriously watered down, with a promise of “no wholesale changes” to the planning system.
The government will “consult” this year on “local partnerships” where “supportive” villages that agree to wind farms could get cheaper bills in return.
But in a victory for rural Tories it adds: “The government recognises the range of views on onshore wind. Our plans will prioritise putting local communities in control.”
There’s no help for energy bills now
Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng was revealing when he said: “I think the impact could be very soon. And by soon, I mean, three or four years.”
The plan mentions the £200 repayable rebate to energy bills, but offers nothing new, just as reports emerge that Rishi Sunak blocked a suggestion to raise it to £500.
Government officials insist they were never pretending this would give short-term help for bills, and it will eventually bring down costs in the long term.
But the Lib Dems said: “It's a disgrace that the Chancellor is refusing to offer extra help to hard pressed families facing soaring energy bills.”
Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury Pat McFadden added: "The Tories have no plan to immediately address their cost of living crisis.
"He could back Labour ’s fair and funded plan for a one-off tax on the booming profits of oil and gas giants - which would reduce household bills by up to £600.”
There’s nothing new for insulating your home
Campaigners hit out furiously at the fact that there’s no new hard fund or target in the plan today for getting old, draughty homes insulated.
Simon McWhirter of the UK Green Building Council added: "Today was a chance to insulate the nation’s homes, protect us against future price hikes and tackle the painful effects of rising energy costs to households.
"The Government has woefully missed its opportunity.”
The funding for those nuclear power stations is very murky
As above, a big new plank of the plan is investing massively in nuclear power stations - with three funding decisions in the next two parliaments.
But what’s missing is any set amount of cash promised now. And that will be hard to come by, especially as a different PM - Labour or Tory - could be in charge by then.
The document is also full of catches and get-out clauses about the hope of building eight new nuclear reactors by 2030.
It says: “Final contracts and construction would commence when any outstanding conditions are satisfied and projects are sufficiently mature.
“Any projects would be subject to a value for money assessment, all relevant approvals and future spending reviews.”
Imports of Russian gas CAN continue
The whole reason behind the plan is Russia ’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, and our need to cut off the “war machine” by no longer buying Russian energy.
But while coal and oil imports to the UK will end by December 2022, we’ll only wean off Russian gas “as soon as possible thereafter”.
Despite 4% of our gas coming from Russia, sources admit the industry - already handling rocketing prices - cannot afford the sudden end of Russian gas.
That’s why there is no hard target on ending our dependence on Russian gas, despite Putin’s regime being accused of war crimes.
