Greens pledge to push for higher CfD strike prices and utility renationalisation

Green Party MPs would push to increase maximum Contracts for Difference (CfD) strike prices in order to help spur delivery of 80GW of offshore wind, 53GW of onshore wind and 100GW of solar by 2035.

The party is also promising to immediately bring the water industry and the five biggest energy retailers into public ownership, at an estimated cost of £30 billion.

In its manifesto, launched on Wednesday (12 June), the Green Party sets out a series of measures to pave the way for wind to provide around 70% of the UK’s electricity by 2030.

It says Green MPs will aim to introduce new support and incentives to directly accelerate wind energy development, consulting with the sector on the best mechanisms to achieve this.

These include increasing the maximum CfD strike price to more accurately reflect supply chain costs and equipping ports and the industry to better support floating offshore wind.

To provide much of the UK’s remaining energy supply by 2030, Greens would introduce new support for solar and other renewable energies, including marine, hydro-power and geothermal.

The manifesto claims it is possible to decarbonise the energy system before 2030, Labour’s target date for achieving this goal, with investment in interconnectors and grid level storage,

It says elected Greens will support extensive use of offshore power networks to reduce the amount of onshore connection infrastructure needed along the UK’s coastlines.

The manifesto also includes a pledge on utility nationalisation.

It says water privatisation has been an “unmitigated disaster” and added that a £1.5 billion cash injection for Defra would increase the Environment Agency’s budget for monitoring and enforcing the flow of pollution into rivers and the sea from fertilisers, agricultural waste and sewage.

The Greens propose that these spending pledges could be financed from its proposals for a fairer, greener tax system that would raise tens of billions of pounds from increased taxes on multimillionaires and billionaires.