The work of the Energy Select Committee

Whilst all select committees earn the moniker ‘influential’ in the media, the reputation of the House of Commons Energy and Climate Change Committee reputation is gaining within Westminster, as it investigates a host of issues, whilst keeping ministers and officials on their toes. They have been quizzed regularly by the Committee, chaired by Tim Yeo, most recently on March 15th with regard to the EMR.

The Committee has been active in their publications, having released reports on emissions performance, national policy statements, as well as deepwater drilling in response to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, a report that included a probing session with former BP CEO Tony Hayward.

Under Tim Yeo’s chairmanship, the Committee has real momentum and with a new batch of MPs, it combines a wide variety of interests and experience. Yeo and his Vice-chair Dr Alan Whitehead are both experienced and deeply knowledgeable of the energy sector, as well as being very pro-renewable, a category the former DEFRA and DTI minister Barry Gardiner also falls within.

The sole Liberal Democrat representative is Sir Robert Smith. Labour MPs Albert Owen and John Robertson share interests in nuclear, with the latter being Chair of the Party Group for Nuclear, although both have been strong advocates of renewables.

The rest of the committee is made up from newly elected Conservatives, all of whom have already impressed in the committee. Security of the UK’s energy supply is a constant thread running through the questioning from Dan Byles, Dr Phillip Lee, Christopher Pincher and Laura Sandys.

With Committee reports on the Electricity Market Reform, energy security and shale gas due to be released, and with a wide ranging Energy Bill expected later this year, the Committee certainly has the opportunity to be genuinely considered influential in 2011.

Client News-GATEWAY SECURES FIRST GAS STORAGE LICENCE FROM UK DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Monday, February 15th 2010

GATEWAY SECURES FIRST GAS STORAGE LICENCE FROM UK DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

The £600m Gateway Gas Storage project has today received the first gas storage licence to be issued by the UK Government under a new regime designed to encourage the construction of new storage facilities in this country. The licence has been issued under the auspices of the 2008 Energy Act and it consolidates the main environmental and planning consents that were given to the project by the Department of Energy & Climate Change and the UK Marine & Fisheries Agency in November 2008.

George Grant, Chairman of Gateway Storage Company said: “The support and encouragement given by DECC to bring the Gateway Storage project forward has been invaluable, as was the Crown Estate’s agreement of the offshore site licence. We are now fully engaged with the project’s engineering design and are targeting 2014 for the start of commercial storage operations.”

The Gateway facility will add new capacity equal to approximately 30% of current UK storage capacity, sufficient to meet five days of Britain’s average gas demand. Gateway will be built in 20 salt caverns, each the size of the Albert Hall, and sited approximately 750m beneath the surface of the seabed. Located 15 miles offshore, south west of Barrow-in-Furness, the storage scheme will be connected to the National Gas Transmission System via a new pipeline to a gas compression station adjacent to the existing Morecambe gas terminals at Barrow.

Last month (January 21st 2010), Gateway announced that AMEC, Parsons Brinckerhoff and Senergy had been appointed to undertake the detailed engineering design work for both the offshore and onshore elements of the scheme. Their work will support a commitment to construction of the facility at the end of this year (2010) and enable the commencement of gas storage services for the UK market in 2014.


Notes to Editors:

1. The Energy Act 2008 created a regulatory framework in which DECC operates a licensing system that regulates storage for environmental and other purposes whilst the Crown Estate controls the exclusive rights to the seabed and the use of geological structures beneath the seabed for gas storage.

2. Gateway Storage (www.gatewaystorage.co.uk) is a company that was formed to develop the gas storage project and is managed by Stag Energy. Stag Energy (www.stagenergy.com) is an independent company, headquartered in Edinburgh. The company, established in 2002, has extensive experience of managing the development, construction and operations of gas storage and power generation projects in the UK and overseas.

For further information:

Gateway Storage Company Ltd

Andrew Stacey / George Grant

T: +44 (0)131 550 3380

E : astacey@stagenergy.com

ggrant@stagenergy.com

or

Paul Taylor (Taylor Keogh Communications)

T: +44 (0) 20 3170 8465

E: paul@taylorkeogh.com

Client News-Marine Energy prototypes backed with new government 22m proving fund

Wave and tidal developers are invited from today to bid for £22 million in new government funding to accelerate the commercial development of marine energy in the UK.

The Marine Renewables Proving Fund, announced in July as part of the Government’s Renewable Energy Strategy, will be designed and delivered by the Carbon Trust and will provide finance for the demonstration of wave and tidal technologies.

The funding follows demand from industry and analysis by the Carbon Trust which has shown that extra support is needed to take marine devices successfully from initial prototype development through to early–stage commercial generation, where they are eligible for funding from the Marine Renewables Deployment Fund.

Energy and Climate Change Minister, Lord Hunt said:

“Clean green renewable energy is a central component of our response to climate change and ensuring future energy supplies.

“The scope for wave and tidal energy around the UK’s shores is massive and we’re working closely with developers in the UK to bring onthe necessary technologies.

“The Proving Fund will help marine projects get off the drawing board and into the water, taking them a vital step closer to full scale commercial viability.”

Project bids will be assessed and managed by the Carbon Trust which has been supporting the marine sector since 2003. It has assessed or worked with over 60 different marine energy devices and committed over £12m of funding to date.

Earlier this month, the Carbon Trust announced it is to support two leading devices, Pelamis Wave Power and Marine Current Turbines, as part of its existing Marine Energy Accelerator initiative. Support will focus on reducing costs associated with the installation, operations and maintenance of marine energy devices.

Tom Delay, Chief Executive of the Carbon Trust, commented:

“Wave and tidal power is a fantastic resource for the UK that could provide up to 20% of our current electricity demand and cut carbon dioxide by tens of millions of tonnes. There are many exciting technologies in development; however, for these to reach commercial viability we need to focus on cost reduction and make mass deployment a reality. The targeted support provided by the Marine Renewables Proving Fund is a much needed boost to the UK’s clean tech revolution and we are delighted to be playing a key role in its delivery.”

Carbon Trust analysis has shown that, with 25% of the world’s wave technologies already being developed in the UK, Britain could be the ‘natural owner’ of the global wave power market, generating revenues worth £2 billion per year by 2050 and up to 16,000 direct jobs.

To generate maximum economic benefit, the Government intends to publish its Marine Action Plan early next year. This will set out the key steps which will need to be taken by both Government and Industry to make the mass deployment of marine energy technologies a reality.

Industry News- UK 'could face blackouts by 2016'

In an interview with the BBC the government's new energy adviser says the UK could face blackouts by 2016 because green energy is not coming on stream fast enough.
Click here for the full text

Political News-DECC appoint David Mackay as Chief Scientific Advisor

David MacKay, Professor in the Department of Physics at Cambridge University and author of the influential book ‘Sustainable Energy -without the hot air' has been appointed Chief Scientific Advisor to the Department of Energy and Climate Change.

The Chief Scientific Advisor’s role is to ensure that the Department’s policies and operations, and its contributions to wider Government issues, are underpinned by the best science and engineering advice available.

Professor MacKay said:

“Climate change and secure energy are two of the most urgent issues facing the UK and the global community. The solutions must be rooted firmly in the science and I look forward to advising the Government on how it can help deliver these important goals.”

Secretary of State Ed Miliband said:

“David MacKay is known for making science accessible and helping to explain clearly the urgency and the challenges of moving to a low carbon economy. I want him to bring all of these qualities to the job of advising DECC on how we can meet Britain’s carbon targets and energy security needs.”

Click Here to read ‘Sustainable Energy -without the hot air' by David Mackay

Political News-UK government proposes faster grid access for renewable energy

UK Secretary of Energy and Climate Change, Ed Miliband, has proposed to address the way power plants are connected to the UK’s power grid in the hope of getting new generation, including renewable energy, connected faster.

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) says in a statement: “The shake-up will help new projects waiting to get a date to feed electricity into the grid to get out of the queue, and will in particular help renewable energy projects such as wind farms.”

Currently 60 GW of new electricity generation is waiting to be connected to the grid, of which 17 GW is from renewable energy.

Under the current system, new generation, including renewable energy, has been connected on a first come first serve basis regardless of when the projects can actually start generating electricity. According to DECC, this means some windfarms, for example, were given grid connection years after they were due to start producing renewable energy.

Miliband says: “Access to the grid has been one of the key barriers to the generation of renewable energy in this country. … We need these new projects to get hooked up to the grid as soon as they are ready – both to help tackle climate change and secure our future energy supplies.

“The government will do whatever is necessary to bring about the transition to a low carbon economy and to give investors the certainty they need so that new renewable energy generation is built.”

DECC proposes three models:

* Connect and manage (socialised): Cost will be shared between all users of the network;
* Connect and manage (hybrid): A model that targets some, but not all, of the additional constraint costs on new entrant power stations;
* Connect and manage (shared cost and commitment): A model that offers the choice to new and existing power stations to commit to the network (which is helpful to the grid in terms of long term management of the system) in return for greater certainty over charges, or to opt out and be exposed to additional constraint costs.

Ofgem has already approved interim arrangements, which so far have seen 1 GW of renewable energy projects in Scotland being offered earlier connection dates. The UK government says it wants to ensure that these arrangements are put fully in place by June 2010.

Political News-Miliband takes action on queue to connect new power generation to the grid

New rules to revamp the way power plants get connected to the UK’s power grid are proposed today by Energy and Climate Secretary Ed Miliband.

The shake-up will help new projects waiting to get a date to feed electricity into the grid to get out of the queue, and will in particular help renewable energy projects such as wind farms.

There is currently over 60 GW of new generation capacity – around 200 projects – that are waiting to be connected to the grid, including around 17 GW from renewable sources.Ed Miliband announced as part of the Government’s Low Carbon Transition Plan in July that the Government would reform the previous system of projects getting a connection date on a first come, first served basis regardless of when the project would start generating energy. This meant some wind farms were given connection dates years after when they were due to start producing electricity. Today’s consultation offers industry a say on three options for how the new system will work.

The proposed scheme will also give investors confidence that projects will be given a connection date that fits in with their project development timeline.

Ed Miliband said:

“Access to the electricity grid has been one of the key barriers to the generation of renewable energy in this country. We are determined to resolve this issue. That is why we took powers to do so in the Energy Act and today we are setting out our proposals.

“We need these new projects to get hooked up to the grid as soon as they are ready – both to help tackle climate change and secure our future energy supplies.

“The government will do whatever is necessary to bring about the transition to a low carbon economy and to give investors the certainty they need so that new renewable energy generation is built.”

For the first time, the Government will be making the detailed reforms to grid access rules that are necessary to overcome the delays. Previously, reforms were proposed
by industry and then approved or rejected by the regulator, Ofgem.

There are three proposed models that DECC is consulting on from today that build on industry and Ofgem’s work over the last year.

The three models look at different ways to manage the queue and to share the cost of connecting more plants to the system that is to be expected from this system.

The models are:

1.Connect and Manage (Socialised): - costs will be shared between all users of the network.
2. Connect and Manage (Hybrid): A model that targets some, but not all, of the additional constraint costs on new entrant power stations.
3. Connect and Manage (Shared Cost and Commitment): A model that offers the choice to new and existing power stations to commit to the network (which is helpful to Grid in terms of long term management of system) in return for greater certainty over charges, or to opt out and be exposed to additional constraint costs.

Ofgem has already approved interim arrangements to help new power stations connect more quickly, and under these interim arrangements around 1 GW of renewable projects in Scotland have already been offered earlier connection dates. However this was only ever intended as an interim measure and Government is intervening to ensure enduring access arrangements are put in place by June next year. This will be essential for investor confidence that we have a long-term and sustainable framework in place.

Click Here to view the full consultation

Industry News-Extra finance to start flowing for wind power

Up to £1 billion of loans for onshore wind farms

Up to £10 million of Government grants for offshore wind technology development

Three UK-based banks start work today with the European Investment Bank (EIB) on a programme to lend up to £1 billion to onshore wind farms over the next 3 years.

The cash, part of the additional £4 billion of EIB lending to support UK energy projects announced in the Budget, will help get building started for onshore wind projects which have been hit by the credit crunch, particularly small and mid-sized wind farms.

The banks – RBS, Lloyds and BNP Paribas Fortis – have been teamed up with the EIB by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) and HM Treasury, following the announcement in April’sBudget Statement that the Government wanted to get more EIB lending to UK renewables.

Firms can also apply for DECC cash from today to develop offshore wind technology. There will be up to £10 million in grants, part of the £120 million announced in the renewable energy strategy last week to support offshore wind. This is the second round of cash for development of offshore wind technology.

DECC is also confirming today that, subject to agreement on suitable grant offer conditions, it also intends to make an award under the first round of this programme for Vestas Technology UK Ltd’s research and development centre on the Isle of Wight. This proposed award – more than £6 million - would include over £3m of funding from the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA). We expect to make other announcements on awards under this first round of funding shortly.

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband said:

“Earlier this month we laid out a transition plan to a low carbon economy that included a massive expansion of green wind energy. The resources we are announcing back up our plans with clear actions to ensure we deliver.

“The European Investment Bank funds will help the building start on consented wind farms that could provide 1 gigawatt of electricity, enough to power more than half a million homes.

“The money for the development of offshore wind manufacturing will help us generate green jobs on top of our success as the leading country in the world for the generation of offshore wind.

"Alongside these proposals, we are reforming planning laws, finding new ways of working with local communities and are determined to persuade people that we need a significant increase in onshore wind as part of the UK's future energy mix.

“That is essential for the generation of renewable energy and for Britain to have an industrial future in the production of onshore wind."

Ian Pearson MP, Economic Secretary to the Treasury said:

“The £4bn of lending to the energy sector that we announced in the Budget is just part of the £10bn of lending that we hope to see coming into the UK economy from the EIB this year, nearly three times last year's total. I am pleased at the success we are having working in partnership with EIB to provide financing to this and other important sectors.”

EIB Vice President Simon Brooks said:

“The development of the UK’s wind energy capacity will support the European Union’s and national targets for renewable energy generation. As well as helping to reduce greenhouse gasses it will strengthen the security of energy supplies. This initiative underlines the EIB’s long involvement, as the EU’s financing arm, in the UK’s energy sector and reinforces efforts to reduce the impact of climate change”.

For full details on this press notice

Industry News-Government admits marine power fund has run aground

Plans undermined by admissions that it has not handed out any of a £50m marine development fund set up in 2004.

Government promises that it would establish Britain as a global centre for tidal and wave power have been undermined by admissions that it has nothanded out any of a £50m marine development fund set up in 2004.

Companies have often complained that the rules for the Marine Renewable Deployment Fund (MRDF) are so demanding that they have struggled to get money from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to develop prototypes.

"As yet there have been no projects which have met the necessary requirements [of the MRDF]," the department told the Observer, but it insisted that changes made in the government's renewable energy strategy, published last week, would transform the situation.

A new Marine Renewables Proving Fund of £22m has been set aside to help marine power companies reach the stage where they would be eligible for MRDF money. The fund requires companies to demonstrate their prototype power systems have operated for at least three months before they can receive money.

Companies argued they needed funding earlier and the DECC has finally agreed. The department has also sought to make up ground by pumping £9.5m into the trial Wave Hub wave power system off Cornwall plus £8m for the European Marine Energy Centre in the Orkneys.

In addition the marine power sector should benefit from £10m being put into the south-west, which is the UK's first low-carbon economic area.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/jul/19/utilities-energy-marine-power-uk

Industry News-Review of UK policy annoucements on the future of energy and transport

Through out the week there was a blizzard of announcements focusing on the future of UK energy and decarbonising transport.

On Wednesday 15th of July the UK government published a white paper called the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan which has three elements; Renewable Energy Strategy, Low Carbon Industry Strategy and the Low Carbon Transport Plan. The paper sets out the government’s plans to meet its target of cutting carbon dioxide emissions by 34 per cent from 1990 levels by 2020.

In general the announcement focused on the renewable sector which is expected to increase its production of electricity from 6 per cent to 31 per cent over the next eleven years to 2020. The government wants to encourage all forms of low-carbon energy, Marine, Biomass, Onshore & offshore wind, nuclear power and clean coal (CCS) power stations that capture and store their emissions.

At the heart of the government's plans are giant offshore wind parks. The renewable energy industry will be given £120m to develop offshore wind technologies. The Government is allocating up to an additional £60 million for a suite of measures which will help accelerate the development and deployment of wave and tidal energy

The government reiterated their support for clean coal power generation and the progress being made in the area but were not forthcoming with any more statements. The June 2009 CCS consultation document along with the four site trials that are being funded will determine the future of the industry in the UK. In a new move the government are to open an Office of Carbon Capture and Storage to support the delivery of CCS. Full details will be announced in the autumn of this year.

Nuclear energy received little mention in the announcement apart from the government saying that it still had a part to play in the energy mix. The government are looking at streamlining the planning and regulatory approvals processes for new nuclear power stations. A national policy statement and a consultation document is due to be launched later in 2009.

The Government will provide capital investment to establish a Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre that combines the knowledge, practices and expertise of manufacturing companies with the capability of universities. This will complement the existing Advanced Manufacturing Centres in Sheffield and Glasgow and the Nuclear Laboratory in Sellafield.

Low Carbon Transport Plan

The Low Carbon Transport Plan focussed on decarbonising transport by moving to an integrated transport system with cycling, cars, rail, public transport and aviation all playing their part.

Lord Adonis, the Transport Secretary pledged to reducing CO2 emissions from transport by 14 per cent by 2020. Under the new proposals the government will offer consumers grants of up to £5,000 if they purchase low polluting cars such as electric and plug in hybrids. Under the new proposals only cars that emit 75g per km of C02 or below will be eligible for these grants. The best-performing hybrid in the market in of 2009 is the Toyota Prius emitting 89g/km per KM of CO2.

The transport white paper has been welcomed environmentalists and business groups and is expected to become law by the end of the year. An overall a package of £250m of consumer incentives is being invested by the government to stimulate the take up of electric and plug-in-hybrid vehicles (This £250m figure is not new this announcement was made by Lord Mandelson the spring 2009).

One area where the move to more electric vehicles and hybrids has been falling down is in the area of charging points. There are very few in London and even less per square mile across the UK. This is significant. The move to electric vehicles will be slow if the consumer has the hassle of having no charging points outside their home. There is a serious need for charging points to be rolled out across the UK transport infrastructure quickly.

Recognising this as an issue the government have launched a new Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Grant Programme. The government will also unite Whitehall interests through the new Office for Low Emission Vehicles.

But this will not be the end of the debate. The government are working closely with industry and key stakeholders to develop a roadmap to 2050 by spring 2010. In autumn, the Committee on Climate Change will provide further analysis of the pathway through 2030 to 2050. The Government will work with the Committee, taking its analysis and recommendations into account when developing the roadmap to 2050. So there are several more negotiations and steps to go in the UK energy debate.

Jonny Mulligan

Client News-MGT Power to build large biomass plant on Teesside

LARGE SCALE BIOMASS POWER PLANT TO BE BUILT ON TEESSIDE

Date: July 15^th 2009

The £500m Tees Renewable Energy Plant, located at Teesport, and being developed by British company MGT Power Limited has received consent from the British Government under Section 36 of the Electricity Act.

At 295MW capacity, the plant will generate enough electricity to meet the needs of approximately 600,000 homes and will be one of the largest-ever biomass plants to be built in the world, and one of the largest of all renewable energy projects. The Tees Renewable Energy Plant will enter commercial operation in late 2012.

Chris Moore, Director of MGT Power said: “The Government’s consent is welcome news as we are at an advanced stage with forestry establishment for fuel sourcing, and power plant procurement. We can now mandate our banks, conclude the financing and reach agreement with our preferred technology bidders. We are moving towards an early construction start with a high degree of confidence.”

He added: “Other similarly sized biomass plants are proposed in other parts of the country but our Teesport project is currently two years ahead of the pack and likely to be one of the first to be operational. It comes at a time when replacement UK energy generation capacity is urgently needed. We will continue to work closely with Redcar & Cleveland Council as well as PD Ports, the owners of Teesport, Renew Tees Valley and the local Trade Unions to complete the project. Their support and commitment to the project over the last 2 years has been invaluable. ”

The Tees Renewable Energy Plant will help to meet the Government’s environmental and renewable energy targets and add to the country’s growing need to diversify its power generation. It will create 600 jobs during the three year construction period, 150 permanent jobs during the station’s lifetime, and once operating will contribute about £30m per annum into the North East’s economy, supporting a further 300-400 jobs indirectly. It will save 1.2million tonnes of CO₂ per year and will account for 5.5% of the UK’s renewable electricity target.

David Kidney MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the UK Department of Energy & Climate Change said: “The Tees Renewable Energy Plant brings a range of economic and environmental benefits, not least creating new jobs at Teesport, and the use of clean technology will help reduce carbon emissions. Biomass generation, using sustainable sources, is starting to make a significant contribution to the UK’s energy market and will help us reach our renewable targets.”

The biomass feedstock for the Tees Renewable Energy Plant will be sourced from certified sustainable forestry projects developed by the MGT team and partners in North and South America and the Baltic States. These projects will provide clean burning woodchip, which delivers 95% greenhouse gas savings in comparison to coal or natural gas through the life cycle and will not use high quality land suitable for food crops.

The plant will use around 2.4m tonnes of woodchips per annum and will operate at baseload – 24 hours a day, all year round. This means the Tees Renewable Energy Plant will produce the same amount of renewable electricity over a year as a 1,000MW wind farm.

Notes to Editors:

1. MGT Power (www.mgtpower.com) was established in December 2007 to develop biomass generation projects in the UK and Europe. The management team includes Chris Moore, Ben Elsworth, Thiago Azevedo and Noel Forrest who have backgrounds in UK power generation and the supply of renewable energy feedstocks. The company’s main shareholders include Trafalgar Asset Managers and MKM Longboat. The firm’s financial advisors are Ernst & Young and engineering consultants are Pöyry Energy and PB Power. Legal advisors include Taylor Wessing, Dickinson Dees and Shadbolt.

2. The site is about 6kms east of Middlesbrough and 5kms west of Redcar. It is situated on land adjacent to the main southern dock at Teesport on the south bank of the River Tees. It has a number of advantages: available industrial zone land, suitable dockside acreage in a deep water port, good access to the National Grid and associated electrical infrastructure, excellent highly skilled local industrial workforce and contracting base, and excellent road links.

3. As a storable, concentrated energy form, wood biomass allows electricity generation 24 hours a day, all year round, in contrast to intermittent renewable sources such as wind or solar. MGT Power will use trees sustainably planted specifically for use as fuel, such as Short Rotation Forestry (eg. Eucalyptus, Pines) and Short Rotation Coppicing (eg. Willow, Poplar).

For further information & images please contact:

Paul Taylor (Taylor Keogh Communications) on +44 (0)20 3170 8466 / +44 (0)7966 782611

Political News-Speculation grows around Miliband energy plans

Green Jobs, Bill Increases, Speed and Clarity are the order of the day

Speculation is growing around the details of Ed Milliband's, renewable energy package which is due to be announced on Wednesday. This will be the third time in five years that the government will attempt to make clear their proposals on cutting green house emissions and their ideas for energy generation in the UK.

The UK government is committed to cutting carbon emissions by 34 per cent by 2020. The UK is also bound by the European Union to produce 15 per cent of the country’s energy needs from renewables by the same year.

The question is how the government intend to fund the estimated £100 billion needed for development of the renewable sector and the upgrade of the national grid to a ‘smart grid’. The fear among politicians is that the costs will and can only be met by an increase in energy bills for the voter.

An increase in bills in economic tight times will do nothing but increase voters ire and is a dangerous move in an election year. Ed Miliband and his advisers will be very aware that discussing bill increases of a pound or two are fine and may go somewhat unnoticed at the end of a heatwave in the summer months. However the political repercussions will be felt in the winter months when demand for energy increases and the prices start to spike again. But if it is not the consumer that will shoulder the burden of the government meeting its renewables target then who will?

The private sector has already claimed that there is not enough available money or investment in bringing new technologies such as marine, biomass and wind to the energy mix at the speed at which is required. Investing in the smart grid, transmission points and further storage all come with a high cost which over time will dwarf the money that was pumped into the banking crisis.

Dieter Helm, an energy expert at New College Oxford was quoted in the Financial Times as saying “the enormous investment needed in renewables would have been hard to finance even when financial markets were strong, and would be even more difficult following the credit crunch” The return to investors would need to come from the public through higher energy bills.

This echoes the opinion outlined early this week by David Milborrow in his paper Managing Variability where he claims that “The UK can meet its targets of generating more than a third of its electricity from wind by 2020 without raising the risk of blackouts at an additional cost of £2 for every £100 electricity bill”.

The uncertainty over returns on investment in wind and solar power has already seen some large energy groups such as BP and Royal Dutch Shell from pulling back from the renewable sector. The government’s former chief scientific adviser, Sir David King, sites this hesitancy by the private sector to invest is a result of the government’s failure to come up with a plan and stick to it.

In the Sunday Times he is quoted as saying “you can’t keep adjusting the energy policy, businesses need a clear signal that any investments they make now in low carbon technology and infrastructure in the UK will pay off in the future”.

On the positive side Miliband is expected to announce the creation of up to 400,000 green collar jobs. These jobs are expected to focus across the renewable sector of wind, solar, marine and biomass. But there will be funding for the nuclear sector also.

Whatever, the finer details of this weeks’ announcement Miliband must make speed and clarity as being the essence for the growth of the sector and creation of green jobs. Earlier this week Dr. Keith Maclean, Head of Policy and Public Affairs, Scottish & Southern Energy in the APPCCG Westminster Debate noted that “the uncertainty that there is around small projects because of issues in relation to transmission charges.

Smaller developers need to be able to show the bank that they can make a return on their investment and for this to be done DECC will need to use their powers under the energy act very quickly to make this happen”. His fear is that unless action is taken in this area soon there will “be no investment for more small to medium generators going into the market”.

If the government are to find a solution to the two challenges of climate change and creating new jobs the time is to act now.