Government's green energy policy is a "national disaster"

London, 1 September: Net Zero Watch has condemned the Government’s green energy policies as “a national disaster.” 

This follows the announcement that a major offshore windfarm will not activate an agreement to sell power at a much lower cost to the grid.

The Times has reported that the Hornsea 2 windfarm, which had a contract to sell power at £73 per megawatt hour, will instead sell in the open market, where prices have averaged £200 per megawatt hour this year, and reached £508 last week.

Britain's struggling energy consumers are likely to end up paying a billion pounds extra for Hornsea’s electricity over the next 12 months.

The new Prime Minister should urgently look into the legal options for cancelling or revoking these poorly written contracts, the spirit of which are being grotesquely abused to the huge disadvantage to British consumers. 

By 2026, there could be more than 16GW of offshore windfarms exploiting the perverse loophole (Moray East, Hornsea 2, Triton Knoll, InchCape, Seagreen Phase 1, Neart na Gaoithe, Dogger Bank A, Dogger Bank B, Dogger Bank C, Sofia, Hornsea 3, Norfolk Boreas, Moray West and East Anglia Three.)

Assuming they deliver 50% of capacity each year, and the differential between market price and CfD price remains at £130/MWh, the cost to consumers will be £9billion per year, at a cost of £337 per household.

Onshore windfarms, solar, and remote island windfarms will raise that figure still higher.

Reacting to the news, Net Zero Watch Director Benny Peiser said:

In the midst of the worst energy crisis since World War II, wind companies are milking the system by using a perverse loophole.

And just a few weeks ago, Kwasi Kwarteng signed the contract for Hornsea 3, which contains the same loophole, as does the contract for every other offshore windfarm on the horizon.

The Government is putting every household on the hook for hundreds of pounds more, every year. Energy policy is lurching from one rip-off to another. It’s a national disaster.”