26 July 2024

Westminster view

As Labour’s plan to create a state-owned energy investment vehicle, GB Energy, has been clarified, greater scrutiny is being given to the implications of what taking direct government stakes in renewable energy projects would have.

The claim made at the election that this could somehow save consumers £300 a year has also been exposed as misleading, and the notion that a zero emissions electricity grid by 2030 is even possible is questioned by many energy experts.

At the heart of Miliband’s proposals is a desire to increase the amount of electricity generated by wind and solar - so it’s crucial for the public to understand whether these technologies represent value for money and what impact they will have on the grid, and therefore on bills.

Two excellent new blog posts on our website (links below), both by experienced energy experts, examine these questions:

Bruno Prior looks in detail at how we should value both renewable energy itself, and the carbon savings it generates, and finds the Government’s subsidy scheme to be over-generous.

Deri Hughes looks at the implications of having large quantities of variable renewable energy on an alternating current (AC) grid.

Do give them a read!

With best wishes as always to our readers and the generous donors who make our work possible,

Harry

Harry Wilkinson is head of policy at Net Zero Watch. As always, please don’t reply to this email address, which is not monitored.

The headlines

UK

• New gas-fired power needed

• Analysts confirm implausibility of Labour plans

• Labour accused of ‘lying’ over pledge to knock £300 off bills

Around the world

• Coal demand grows

Decarbonisation

• Carbon capture isn’t working

• Irrational nuclear regulation

• Meltdown-proof reactor

Etcetera

• Miliband and the myth of cheap wind

From the blog

• The cost of Contracts for Difference

• On grid stability

UK

New gas-fired power needed

To the surprise of most people in the Westminster bubble (but few outside it), the National Engineering Policy Centre said that the UK would need new gas-fired power stations in the near future.

Analysts confirm implausibility of Labour plans

Energy analysts Cornwall Insight suggested that by 2030, the UK grid will not even be 50% decarbonised, let alone carbon-free, as Mr Miliband claims is his plan.

Labour accused of ‘lying’ over pledge to knock £300 off bills

Labour’s pledge to slash £300 off energy bills was branded ‘a lie’ last night after Ed Miliband admitted his ‘clean power’ revolution may not cut bills at all before the next election.

Around the world

Coal demand grows

Global coal demand grew by over 2% in 2023, with no decline in prospect.

Decarbonisation

Carbon capture isn’t working

The UK’s National Audit Office said that the country’s carbon capture projects were behind schedule and that the £20 billion of funding allocated was inadequate.

Irrational nuclear regulation

A new GWPF paper looked at some of the absurdities of rules for dealing with nuclear accidents, and the extraordinary costs involved.

Meltdown-proof reactor

A test of a Chinese pebble-bed nuclear reactor showed that it was completely meltdown-proof

Etcetera

Miliband and the myth of ‘cheap wind’

Harry was on TNT Radio, talking about Ed Miliband’s first days in office and his apparent lack of interest in electricity prices.

From the blog…

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