The UK will fail to meet its targets on renewable energy generation, with take-up of clean fuels for heating and transport falling badly behind aims, MPs have warned.

 

The findings of the influential energy and climate change committee (ECC) show that ministers have little clear plan for meeting the 2020 target to meet 15% of energy needs from renewable sources.

 

This includes a target to generate 30% of electricity from wind, solar and other low-carbon sources by the end of the decade, and to generate 12% of heating energy and 10% of transport fuels from clean sources by the same date.

 

These targets were set under the EU’s renewable energy plan, but ministers are still required to meet them despite the Brexit vote. The UK is faring best on renewable electricity, the target for which may be met if current trends continue, but the proportion of renewable energy used for transport has fallen in the last year, and heating remains a significant problem.

 

The report findings are the latest warning over the UK’s waning attractions for renewable energy investors.

 

Heating and transport fuels are particular problems because there are few options available other than fossil fuels. For instance, ground source heat pumps are difficult to install, biomass heating can produce soot particles, and biofuels – made from plants – are controversial as they can contribute to deforestation if not closely managed.

 

The MPs said that the rearrangement of government departments that has resulted in the closure of the Department of Energy and Climate Change, with its responsibilities bundled into an enlarged Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, could be an opportunity for renewed focus on meeting the targets. However, they also warned that these priorities could be lost as ministers cope with the implications of leaving the EU. (The Guardian)

 

 

PHOTO: Government policies effectively ending public support for onshore wind, and slashing support for solar and offshore wind, have hit progress on the electricity generation target, say MPs.

CREDIT: Michael McGurk/Alamy.