Wind pledges 'excellent news' for Humber at the 'front of the queue' for investment, says energy boss

Ministers pledged to turn the UK into the “Saudi Arabia of wind power” yesterday, as the firm behind the largest wind farm in the world off the coast of Yorkshire hailed plans as “excellent news” for the Humber.

The Energy Security Strategy released yesterday contained commitments to half of the UK’s renewable energy being wind generated by 2030.

However, critics have said that the plan, designed to reduce the country’s reliance on foreign nations for power, is a “missed opportunity” to alleviate some of the pressures facing house-

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holds this month as bills have soared. As part of a drive to generate 95 per cent of UK power from low carbon sources by 2030, the Government has set a new ambition for 50 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind – up from a previous goal of 40GW.

File photo dated 06/10/20 of Teesside Wind Farm near the mouth of the River Tees off the North Yorkshire coast. (PA)File photo dated 06/10/20 of Teesside Wind Farm near the mouth of the River Tees off the North Yorkshire coast. (PA)
File photo dated 06/10/20 of Teesside Wind Farm near the mouth of the River Tees off the North Yorkshire coast. (PA)

The plans promised “we will be the Saudi Arabia of wind power”, and in his foreword, Boris Johnson promised to “work with industry to slash our way through needless and repetitive red

tape”, as the strategy laid out how the consent process would be reduced from four years to one.

“Energy companies tell me they can get an offshore wind turbine upright and generating in less than 24 hours but that it can take as much as 10 years to secure the licences and permissions required to do so,” Mr Johnson added.

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Hornsea wind farm off the east coast of Yorkshire is the largest in the world, and the UK head of Orsted, the Danish firm behind it, said the proposals mean regions like this one will be at the “front of the queue to benefit”.

Duncan Clark told The Yorkshire Post yesterday: “A newly increased target of 50GW for offshore wind by 2030 and proposals to significantly reduce the time these utility scale projects take to navigate the planning process is excellent news.

“In particular it is excellent news for areas like the Humber, which are already at the forefront of the offshore wind industry and the front of the queue to benefit from the investment and jobs this growth will bring.”

Yesterday’s strategy also contained detail on boosting nuclear power and hydrogen, but has been widely criticised for not doing enough to help families in the short term who are struggling to heat their homes.

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Ministers have been under increasing pressure to act since the Russian invasion of Ukraine pushed prices up even further.

Chairman of the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy committee, Labour’s Darren Jones said: “For families and businesses across the country energy security means being able to turn the heating or electricity on knowing you can afford to pay the bill.

“Ministers continue to ignore the reality faced by of millions of people with yet another missed opportunity to help bill payers and a failure to announce funding for the home insulation works required to reduce the amount of heating needed in the first place.”

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the announcement is “not enough” and “too little, too late” to help households with their rapidly rising costs, and misses issues such as home insulation.