House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee report


The 6th Report of the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee was published on 16 May 2018, and provides context for the question of UK decarbonisation raised in connection with Ofgem’s recent report (see 27th July post).
The Audit Committee’s report entitled
“Green finance: mobilising investment in clean energy and sustainable development” is available at       
https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmenvaud/617/61702.htm

In its conclusions and recommendations, the report addresses the challenge of investment: after commenting on progress in reducing the carbon intensity of the UK power sector and investment in clean energy, it notes a warning made in 2016 that
“sudden changes to policy had undermined investor confidence and could have an impact on the pipeline of projects in development. Recent figures for cash investment confirm that there has been a dramatic and worrying collapse in clean energy investment since 2015 … the fall in clean energy investment in 2017 is concerning because of the potential implications for our longer-term carbon reduction plans … To meet these targets, low-carbon energy projects need to be in development now, given the long lead-in times involved. .. policy changes have dented investor confidence and curtailed the support available to new low carbon projects. The Government needs to restore confidence and provide a stable policy environment to deliver a pipeline of projects.”


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