Government plans seven-fold increase in renewable electricity

The government’s newly released renewable energy consultation strategy states that 35% of electricity will have to come from renewables by 2020, in order to meet binding EU energy targets.

At present, less than 5% of UK electricity is derived from renewables.

However, the long-awaited report includes plans for one in four homes to be fitted with solar heating equipment and outlines proposals for a 30-fold increase in on-shore wind power generation within the next 12 years.

The EU requires 15% of Britain’s energy to be sourced from renewables by 2020.

Other proposals set out to achieve these targets include microgeneration and small-scale renewables installations within homes and other buildings, potentially through a feed-in tariff.

The report also outlines plans for new electricity grid infrastructure, along with removing barriers to access the transmission grid to encourage renewable deployment.

Under the suggested policies, Biomass capacity is also to be boosted and all biofuels must meet strict sustainability criteria to limit their impact on food prices.

The consultation expects to achieve carbon savings of around 20m tonnes of CO2 in 2020 and to reduce gas imports by 12-16%.

It also predicts that up to 160 000 jobs will be created to deliver the necessary investment in the UK.

Business Secretary John Hutton said: “We are opening a new chapter in Britain’s history as a nation of enterprise and innovation, moving from the old, carbon intensive economy of the industrial revolution to the new low carbon technologies of the 21st century.”

Despite its confidence that a green revolution will take place throughout the UK in the next 12 years, the government also acknowledges the need for investment in non-renewable back-up generation.

Responses to the renewable energy strategy consultation are invited by 26 September 2008. A final strategy is expected to be in place by spring 2009.