Renewables could be cheapest source of low carbon energy by 2030

By DARA BUTTERFIELD

The Renewable Energy Association is calling on European leaders to set effective renewable energy targets for EU Members States in the 2030 energy and climate framework, which will be finalised at a meeting of the European Council, which ends today.

The REA – the largest trade body for Britain’s renewables industry – is calling for targets for 40% savings in greenhouse gas, energy efficiency and renewable energy and say these targets should be legally binding and distributed to Member State level.

This is far higher than the proposed EU-wide renewable energy target of “at least 27%” alongside a 40% reduction in greenhouse gases and a 30% increase in energy efficiency.

Dr Nina Skorupska, REA Chief Executive, said: “People working in UK renewables simply don’t know whether the Government wants the industry to keep growing or not.

“There have been so many mixed signals this parliament that it has become almost impossible for our members to plan and invest for their future. The 2030 renewables targets for Member States will give businesses the certainty they need.

“If this doesn’t happen, it will be up to the UK Government to set out its own vision for renewables in the 2020s and beyond.

As renewables businesses are usually smaller and younger than fossil fuel and nuclear companies, a ‘technology neutral’ framework will leave them at a disadvantage.

“With clear market signals though, renewables will be the cheapest source of low carbon energy, without the need for subsidy, well before 2030.”

She added that renewables are likely to be the cheapest supply-side option for achieving the stretching 2030 greenhouse gas targets that will be required to avoid dangerous climate change.

The Renewable Energy Association – represents renewable energy producers and promotes the use of all forms of renewable energy in the UK across power, heat, transport and renewable gas – is the largest renewable energy trade association in the UK, with approximately 1,000 members, ranging from major multinationals to sole traders

* Meanwhile, the REA will be analysing the implications of the final 2030 energy and climate framework at a conference in London on 4 December – ‘The 2030 Climate and Energy Framework: stakeholder reaction, UK policy and delivery implications’.

The first event in the REA’s new Renewable Energy Policy & Politics Series, this will explore the challenge of how to place renewables at the heart of the UK’s national plan for delivering its 2030 energy and climate change objectives.

The event will be chaired by Westminster MPs Alan Whitehead and Tim Yeo from the Energy & Climate Change Committee. Other confirmed speakers include:

• Dr. Dörte Fouquet, Director, European Renewable Energies Federation
• Adrian Gault, Chief Economist and acting Chief Executive, Committee on Climate Change
• Ronan O’Regan, Director, Renewables, PwC
• Gareth Redmond, Head of Renewables Programme Team, DECC