PM fast tracks £300m for offshore wind in push for clean energy investment

Sir Keir Starmer has announced £300 million funding for domestic offshore wind supply chains as part of a push to secure clean energy investment in the UK.

The funding through publicly-owned company Great British Energy, brought forward as an initial investment ahead of the spending review, will be invested in a domestic supply chain for components such as floating platforms and cables for the offshore wind industry, the Government said.

The Prime Minister, making the announcement ahead of an energy security summit in London, said the fast-tracked funding would create jobs and strengthen UK security, as he called for international investment in British clean energy.

‘Growth’

Sir Keir said: “Delivering the plan for change means winning the race for the clean energy jobs of the future, which will drive growth and help us reach clean power by 2030.

“That is why I am bringing forward much-needed investment in our domestic offshore wind supply chains, strengthening our security and creating good jobs for our welders, electricians, and engineers.

“Let my message to the world go out: come and build the clean energy future in Britain.”

It is part of a push to encourage developers and investors to invest in clean energy in the UK, which Labour has made a core plank of its growth strategy.

The Government has committed to delivering most of Britain’s energy through green sources by the end of the decade, which will require a huge ramping up of offshore and onshore wind, solar panels and the grid.

It is hoped the announcement of the funding, part of the £8.3 billion announced for Great British Energy, will mobilise additional private investment and secure manufacturing facilities for energy supply chain components which are key for the domestic offshore wind industry.

Long term investement

Companies will be able to apply for grants if they can show they will produce long term investment in UK supply chains.

It comes as Energy Secretary Ed Miliband is expected to introduce an amendment to the Great British Energy Bill to force the new publicly-owned company to ensure parts for renewables such as solar panels are not linked to forced labour in China.

Mr Miliband, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, Minister for Investment Baroness Poppy Gustafsson, National Wealth Fund chief executive John Flint and Great British Energy chairman Juergen Maier are writing to global clean energy developers and investors calling on them to invest in Britain.

Mr Miliband said: “It is only by taking back control of our energy that we can protect families and businesses from the rollercoaster of global markets we don’t control.

“That is why this Government is doubling down on our clean energy superpower mission – driving economic growth, good jobs and investment across our country.”

‘Huge opportunity’

RenewableUK said there was a “huge opportunity” for the UK to secure thousands of new jobs and investment in supply chains for renewables, and make home-grown energy supplies more secure.

Deputy chief executive of the industry body, Jane Cooper, said: “The Prime Minister’s funding will be critical to ensuring the UK grasps the industrial opportunities in the offshore wind supply chain, at a time of intense global competition for clean energy investment.

“By nurturing existing UK companies, and ensuring we’re a competitive location for international investors, there’s an opportunity to triple our manufacturing capacity over the next decade, adding £25 billion to the UK economy and creating an additional 10,000 jobs in the supply chain.”

The Prime Minister, ministers and business leaders are meeting in London on Thursday for a two-day summit on the future of energy security which is hosted by the UK Government and International Energy Agency.

Ahead of the summit, environmental campaigners said developing homegrown renewable resources as well as insulating draughty homes were critical for securing our energy security.

Mike Childs, from Friends Of The Earth, urged the Government to set a legally-binding target to make the UK a renewable energy superpower and a net exporter of clean, green energy by 2050.