In his haste to reach his energy goals, the new Secretary of State, Ed Miliband, is demonstrating why he alone may be the biggest obstacle to clean power and net zero.
Well, there's a coincidence Richard. Only this afternoon did I e-mail Mr Miliband regarding the NG Norwich to Tilbury issue and in it I referred to the indecent haste with which he had passed the Sunnica application! I am therefore not surprised to now hear of his incompetence in the matter and can only hope that he might learn how to do his job properly before determining the outcome of our battle. I just wish I could add some optimism to that hope.
He needs to slow down and do it properly, not just chase arbitrary dates! It always amazes me how these things are always 2030 or 2035 or 2050….it’s never 2051, 2037 or 2032. Which suggests to me it’s more often based on what sounds good rather than what is the appropriate, or most achievable, goal.
Didn’t Boris originally pluck 2030 from the air, but it became 2035 once written down. I recall some years ago the ESO saying 2030 was possible … pending the right actions being done well before then
I think Boris created a then lofty target for offshore wind generation by 2030 - 50GW. The target has since been increased. But I don’t believe even he thought full decarbonisation possible in that time frame. As ever, it’s the last 5% that’s the challenge. We could likely get to 95% by 2030 and then spend another five years getting to 100%. With CCS lagging, it’s beyond a tall order.
Claire Coutinho really should have changed national policy statements EN-1 or EN-3 in late 2023 when they were revised, rather than mentioning BMV land could not be used for solar during an election campaign. And EN-5 should likewise have been revised to drop the presumption of pylons in 2023. I’ve been bothering NGET, Ofgem and DESNZ about this since 2015 and the only glimmer of hope was the election promise to look into the relative costs of undergrounding
I imagine that had it been refused, while following policy, there could have been a legal challenge from the developer?
On Anglesey there is a solar proposal that was under 350 MW, so covered by Welsh planning which has excluded BMV land for years, but it was pushed to 360 MW to become an NSIP. The developer insists this was not to get around the Welsh BMV restriction, but who knows?
Interesting point about the developer’s assessment of the land differing to others. That’s certainly something to focus on. They claim it is mainly 3b and 4
Well, there's a coincidence Richard. Only this afternoon did I e-mail Mr Miliband regarding the NG Norwich to Tilbury issue and in it I referred to the indecent haste with which he had passed the Sunnica application! I am therefore not surprised to now hear of his incompetence in the matter and can only hope that he might learn how to do his job properly before determining the outcome of our battle. I just wish I could add some optimism to that hope.
He needs to slow down and do it properly, not just chase arbitrary dates! It always amazes me how these things are always 2030 or 2035 or 2050….it’s never 2051, 2037 or 2032. Which suggests to me it’s more often based on what sounds good rather than what is the appropriate, or most achievable, goal.
Didn’t Boris originally pluck 2030 from the air, but it became 2035 once written down. I recall some years ago the ESO saying 2030 was possible … pending the right actions being done well before then
I think Boris created a then lofty target for offshore wind generation by 2030 - 50GW. The target has since been increased. But I don’t believe even he thought full decarbonisation possible in that time frame. As ever, it’s the last 5% that’s the challenge. We could likely get to 95% by 2030 and then spend another five years getting to 100%. With CCS lagging, it’s beyond a tall order.
Yes, the last few % will be very difficult and cost a fortune
I remember Boris promising 40 GW offshore which then became 50 GW after ScotWind leased 25 GW
Claire Coutinho really should have changed national policy statements EN-1 or EN-3 in late 2023 when they were revised, rather than mentioning BMV land could not be used for solar during an election campaign. And EN-5 should likewise have been revised to drop the presumption of pylons in 2023. I’ve been bothering NGET, Ofgem and DESNZ about this since 2015 and the only glimmer of hope was the election promise to look into the relative costs of undergrounding
I imagine that had it been refused, while following policy, there could have been a legal challenge from the developer?
Agreed. I pushed for changes to the NPS at the same time as the NPPF was updated (late 2023). It should have happened earlier. Letter here: https://www.suffolk.gov.uk/asset-library/suffolk-cc-nationally-significant-infrastructure-projects-very-large-scale-solar-farms-24-10-23-redacted.pdf
On Anglesey there is a solar proposal that was under 350 MW, so covered by Welsh planning which has excluded BMV land for years, but it was pushed to 360 MW to become an NSIP. The developer insists this was not to get around the Welsh BMV restriction, but who knows?
Interesting point about the developer’s assessment of the land differing to others. That’s certainly something to focus on. They claim it is mainly 3b and 4