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Energy secretary Amber Rudd has been forced to defend the UK’s progress in meeting its legally binding 2020 renewable energy targets, after a leaked letter to other cabinet members said a 3.5 per cent shortfall is likely.
Rudd faced the Energy and Climate Change Committee (ECCC) following the leak to say that although “it is going to be challenging” to meet the target, the areas of concern are in the heat and transport sectors – and can be addressed with cross-government co-operation.
Rudd assured the committee that the possible shortfall in achieving the target is not due to support cuts for renewable electricity generation, made by the government earlier this year.
Rudd said that the government has always envisaged onshore wind capacity of between 11-13GW by 2020 and remains on track to deliver just over 12GW despite the early closure of the Renewables Obligation (RO) support scheme.
Under EU law the UK must meet 15 per cent of its energy use from renewable sources – including heat, power and transport – by 2020, or face possible legal action from the European Commission.
The UK plans to meet its overall target by getting 30 per cent of electricity, 12 per cent of heat and 10 per cent of transport energy from renewable sources.
According to the leaked letter the transport sector “already requires almost doubling the current levels of renewable fuels between 2017 and 2020”. And renewable heat would require further support beyond the current 2015/16 policy cliff-edge.
Meanwhile, renewable electricity already makes up around 20 percent of the generation mix with further projects to come forward in the coming years.
Rudd admitted that the government doesn’t have the right policies in place for transport and heat to reach the 2020 targets but added that “we have four or five years” to fill the gap.
“It is going to be challenging to make the rest of the target. But it is because I am so committed [to meeting these targets] that I am urging other secretaries of state to take action,” she said.
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