Wind

Onshore wind U-turn ahead? | UK energy minister said to back renewables boom after Ukraine

Kwasi Kwarteng reportedly behind calls to set big targets for wind and solar on land that have for years been stymied by party's policies

The UK government has limited onshore wind expansion.
The UK government has limited onshore wind expansion.Foto: Shutterstock

UK energy secretary Kwasi Kwarteng is said to back plans for a massive expansion of onshore wind and solar capacity by 2030 and an increase to offshore targets, amid reports of rifts in the British government over upcoming plans to bolster energy security.

Kwarteng favours new targets to double onshore wind capacity from 14GW now to 30GW by the end of the decade, with offshore wind hitting 50GW from 10.4GW now, and solar going from 14GW to also reach 50GW, according to the Financial Times, which cited “people close to the process”.

If they were enshrined in a forthcoming UK energy security strategy being drawn up following the invasion of Ukraine, the goals would mark a stunning U-turn over onshore renewables by the ruling Conservative government, and a 10GW increase in ambitions for offshore wind that would raise questions over practicality.

Inter-government wrangling leading to delays to the strategy has been widely covered by UK political reporters over the last few weeks, with disputes said to range from the scale and cost of the role of nuclear – also set for a big jump in ambitions – to ongoing opposition among some Conservatives over the entire UK green agenda, which is aiming for a decarbonised power system by 2035 and energy net-zero by 2050.

Onshore wind will prove a particular bone of contention for the party, which in 2015 brought in drastic policy moves to limit the expansion of turbines on land by excluding them from national renewables auctions and setting planning restrictions on new developments in England, in a move to appease Conservative opponents of renewables that has stalled the sector since – despite regular polls showing widespread public support for projects.

Although onshore wind, as well as large-scale PV, are now back in the contract-for-difference mechanism, pressure has grown since the Ukraine crisis to relax the planning rules and unleash an upswing of what is widely accepted as the fastest to deploy and cheapest source of new zero-carbon power.

Industry body RenewableUK in the last few days joined calls for reforms to the planning system in England, and in Scotland where the best onshore wind resources and largest project pipelines are located.

RenewableUK’s CEO Dan McGrail said: “The risks of remaining dependent on gas for our energy needs are now painfully obvious to bill payers across the UK, but thankfully renewables offer a cheap and rapid escape route. We can’t hope to reduce our dependence on gas while also holding back the quickest and cheapest source of domestic power, which is onshore wind.”

It’s right that across the UK, we should look again at the planning system to make it fit for purpose.

“It’s right that across the UK, we should look again at the planning system to make it fit for purpose, so that it doesn’t stand in the way of communities embracing onshore wind or leave applications delayed for years.”

Offshore obstacles

Offshore wind is already a key part of UK climate and energy strategy, and beloved of Prime Minister Boris Johnson who has put at it the heart of plans to make the UK “the Saudi Arabia of wind power”.

However, adding 10GW to an existing 40GW goal by 2030 that was already seen as stretching would raise questions over delivery. Although the UK still has what’s claimed as the world’s largest offshore wind pipeline – despite falling behind China in installed capacity – the sector has big worries about the speed of consenting, grid access and the ability of the supply chain to meet the build-out.
The UK offshore planning regime will face its latest test in the next few days, with a verdict due on parts of Iberdrola’s 3.1GW East Anglia Hub plan that remain unconsented despite the Spanish giant’s eagerness to press on with development off eastern England.
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Published 29 March 2022, 11:30Updated 29 March 2022, 11:30
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