The U.K. government has announced plans to remove barriers to green energy projects, hoping to bring offshore wind farms to the country faster, as reported by Reuters.
On February 21, the U.K. government and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero announced plans to reform eligibility criteria to planning wind energy programs and increase their Contracts for Difference beyond the 15-year term. These deals are government-provided guarantees for developers to get high upfront costs and protect consumers from increased electricity costs. With the new plans, the U.K. hopes to increase capacity on onshore wind projects as well.
"Our bold new reforms will give developers the certainty they need to build clean energy in the UK, supporting our mission to become a clean energy superpower and bring down bills for good," said U.K. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband.
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In 2024, the U.K. government reversed restrictions on wind energy put in place by the previous Conservative government. According to The Guardian, this helped the country work on onshore and offshore wind farms for the first time in a decade.
"We are wasting no time in investing in the clean homegrown energy that our country needs to lower bills and make Britain energy-independent," said Miliband. "We welcome investors responding to this announcement by moving forward with plans to invest in Britain's clean energy future."
The government reported that it secured nine contracts for offshore wind projects, including proposed plans for Europe's largest and second-largest wind farms.
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Wind is an affordable source of energy that helps eliminate harmful effects of dirty fuels. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the country's wind energy helps eliminate the polluting effects of the equivalent of 73 million cars. Wind energy also has low operating costs, keeps energy prices down, and provides income to communities. A new study from Norway also found one site had zero bird collisions in two years, proving it is possible to avoid the common misconception that turbines are dangerous to birds.
Wind farms are increasing across the world, from Japan to the United States. The proposed SouthCoast Wind project in Massachusetts, for example, aims to power 840,000 homes. In the U.K., wind farms can bring renewable energy to millions of residents. On the Shetland Islands alone, a wind farm could bring renewable energy to 500,000 homes.
"As we accelerate our plan for clean power by 2030, the government will work with the industry on how we can build on this success to ensure we can go even further and faster to deliver the power we need," said Miliband.
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