New UK government pledges to increase targets for renewables

The new UK coalition government has pledged to increase the country’s renewable energy targets.

A document outlining the basis of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat administration states: “We are agreed that we would seek to increase the target for energy from renewable sources, subject to the advice of the climate change committee."

Both the Tory Prime Minister David Cameron and his deputy, Lib Dem Nick Clegg, expressed support for a low carbon economy in their first press conference.

Cameron promised the new government would be "passionate about building a green economy", with Clegg outlining plans to ensure "fine words on the environment are finally translated into action".

There has been considerable unease in the wind sector about Conservative plans to abolish the Renewable Obligations (RO) scheme and replace it with a feed in tariff (FiT) for large scale renewables.

The Lib Dem position has been to maintain RO, although a party environment adviser says that "positions will be worked out jointly from now on" adding that "nothing has been decided yet".

In a pledge yet to be clarified by the new government, the document promises "the full establishment of feed-in tariff systems in electricity – as well as the maintenance of banded ROCs".

The text also promises a series of measures to support the development of a low carbon economy, which include:

- The establishment of a smart grid and the roll-out of smart meters
- Measures to promote a huge increase in energy from waste through anaerobic digestion
- The creation of a green investment bank
- The provision of home energy improvement paid for by the savings from lower energy bills
- Measures to encourage marine energy
- The provision of a floor price for carbon, as well as efforts to persuade the EU to move towards full auctioning of ETS permits
- Mandating a national recharging network for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles.

Reference: Ben Backwell, RECHARGE. Published: Wednesday, May 12 2010

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