The UK Government is in danger of missing its 2030 clean power target, a House of Lords committee has warned.
The Industry and Regulators Committee said the government must step up the scale and pace of building more energy generation and network infrastructure or it could miss its target of decarbonising the electricity system by at least 95% by 2030.
In a report published today, entitled “Power struggle: Delivering Great Britain’s electricity grid infrastructure”, the committee suggests that regional zonal pricing should enable better use of existing grid capacity and lower the cost of electricity, provided that the transition and its risks are managed well.
The report welcomes Ofgem’s decision to prioritise projects that are strategically necessary to meet the clean power target but warns that without greater skills, resources and a more strategic approach, the planning system could remain a key barrier to delivering the infrastructure needed.
The report notes that reforms to the queue to the connect to the grid are welcome but are currently too tightly focused on projects needed before 2030, meaning other projects needed by 2035, such as solar and battery storage, might be held back.
The committee said that greater strategic planning of the energy system should help to speed up planning and regulatory approvals for new grid projects.
It said the government will need to carefully assess the impacts of zonal energy pricing on generators and consumers that are unable to move in response to price changes.
The committee is now calling on the government to publish key metrics for meeting the clean power target every six months, including the successful delivery of grid projects.
It also wants a clear steer on how Ofgem should balance the competing objectives of affordable energy bills, encouraging investment to decarbonise the energy system and ensuring secure energy supplies.
Another recommended course of action is for revenues raised by planning-related fees to be ring-fenced for use by local planning authorities.
In addition, the committee urged the government to set out whether it intends to prioritise electricity grid connections for strategically important sectors or businesses.
Transitional support may need to be offered to generators and consumers who are adversely affected by zonal energy pricing, the committee said.
Committee chair Baroness Taylor of Bolton (pictured) said: “The electricity grid is an essential part of modern life for households, businesses and transport links. Recent outages in Spain, Portugal and Heathrow have shown the devastating disruption that failures can cause.
“Given the scale of changes needed to the planning, regulation and delivery of energy infrastructure, and the UK’s historic record of delivering major infrastructure projects, our report questions the feasibility of meeting the clean power target.
“Time is already running out, and there is no room for complacency. The government and the sector must ramp up their efforts to have a chance of success.”