"Government insiders say Keir Starmer is prepared to miss his own target of removing almost all fossil fuels from the UK's electricity supply by 2030 if doing so proves much more expensive than building gas power instead. The issue will come to a head within weeks as Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, decides how much renewable energy to commission for the next few years."
"There is a choice about what price you're willing to pay for the next [renewables] auction round, which is key to hitting 2030. If it comes to a choice between hitting the target and overpaying, or missing it and keeping costs down, we will miss it. Officials pointed to comments Miliband made last week, when he told an energy industry conference: We won't buy at any price. And if specific technologies aren't competitive, we will look elsewhere."
Government insiders say Keir Starmer is prepared to miss his target of removing almost all fossil fuels from the UK's electricity supply by 2030 if doing so proves much more expensive than building gas power. Energy secretary Ed Miliband faces a decision within weeks on how much renewable capacity to commission and is reportedly willing to commission less than experts recommend if higher procurement costs would push energy bills up. Concerns about the cost of living and shifting political polls are influencing the trade-off between clean power ambitions and controlling bills. Hitting the 2030 goal would require commissioning a record 8GW in the current auction round.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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