The head of Scottish Power has called on the UK government to abandon more unfeasible renewable energy sources, such as the £1.3 billion tidal power plan in Swansea Bay, which was scuppered last week by the government.
Ignacio Galan, who is chairman of Spanish energy conglomerate which owns Scottish Power, called on the UK government to dump what he described as ‘expensive moonshot green technologies’ in favour of more wind- and solar-power.
Galan said the Swansea tidal power decision – the UK government said it was too expensive and not value for money – must see the end of support for what he described as unproven technologies that are a distraction and waste of resources.
He added: “Now is not the time for expensive ‘moonshot’ projects that do little to make renewables more affordable, while possessing only limited potential for global growth.
“It is time to put a line in the sand. We should accept that some renewable technologies will never get to a level where they can compete with wind and solar.
“Wind and solar deserve government support because they have already come down drastically in cost, and would continue to do so
“Investing small amounts to drive down new technology costs is acceptable, but high spending on ideas unproven at scale wastes time in the fight against climate change.”
3 Jul 2018
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