Renewables Industry Hits Back At Inaccurate Energy Report
Published by Katie Anderson on November 7, 2011
The renewable energy industry has hit out at an energy report commissioned by accountancy firm KPMG, calling it flawed and misleading.
The report, due to be published tomorrow, claims that favouring cheaper nuclear and gas-fired power stations over wind warms would save every person in the UK almost £550, as the Government strives to cut pollution by a third to meet 2020 targets.
Currently in favour, KPMG estimates that wind turbines are far too expensive and will cost £108 billion to implement, but by shifting the emphasis towards nuclear and gas-fired power stations instead, it would cut the bill by £34 billion.
“Taking a clinical economist’s view of hitting our carbon-reduction targets for the least cost shows we can reach our goal for a lot less,” said the author of the report, Mark Powell.
“However, to do this, the most expensive forms of renewable energies, particularly offshore wind, need to be scaled back,” he added.
But the ‘Thinking About the Affordable’ energy report has been heavily criticised by the UK’s largest renewable energy trade association for being incorrect in its claims that the country will be able to meet its 2020 carbon reduction target deadline through nuclear and gas-fired power stations. According to RenewableUK, the report misleadingly suggests it would be cheaper, compared to renewable energy sources.
The wind industry has also pointed out that he report is factually incorrect, by claiming that wind turbines only generate electricity for around one-third of the time, where in fact turbines generate electricity for 80-85% of the time.
“The recent rises in electricity bills have been caused by the global increase in the price of gas, not by renewables,” said Charles Anglin, the Communications Director at RenewablesUK.
He pointed to the Annual Fuel Poverty Report from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) states that between 2004 and 2009, domestic electricity prices increased by over 75%, while gas prices increased by over 122% over the same period, while the cost of using wind farms to generate electricity from wind is less than 1% of the average household energy bill.
“Relying heavily on gas will not drive fuel bills down in the future,” he added.
The Energy Department also weighed in on the criticism, stating that KPMG ‘ignored long-term benefits to customers of energy sources that involve no on-going fuel cost’.
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