Fossil fuel generation needed to back up renewables

Paul Golby, chief executive of E.ON, said that Britain would need 50gigawatts of renewable generation to meet the 15% target. But it would also need upwards of 45gigawatts from coal and gas plants ready to be supplied if the renewable sources prove intermittent.

Britain faces a “trilemma” when it comes to energy production, he said. “The UK’s generation is being massively overhauled. We must take this opportunity to make sure that the energy of the future is low-carbon, secure and as low-cost as possible.”

He called for a “new, balanced and honest debate” about the UK's energy needs to better assess the consequence in terms of carbon, cost and security of our energy choices. “Yet, at every turn - on renewables, on coal and no doubt on nuclear - the siloed, narrow and superficial nature of the current energy debate is hampering our ability to meet the country's future energy needs."

E.ON has around 300MW of renewable capacity under development and plans to spend £1bn on new renewables in the next five years, including onshore and offshore wind, biomass and wave and tidal power. Their target is to cut the carbon released by each kW of electricity generated by 10% between 2005 and 2012, having already reduced it by 20% since 1990.