UK to consult on green energy scheme this summer ( planetark.com ):
UK: March 5, 2004
LONDON - Britain said this week it will launch a consultation this summer on possible changes to its Renewable Obligation, a scheme designed to support green energy projects like windfarms, ahead of a formal review of the system in 2005/2006.
The government wants green energy to supply 10 percent of the country's power by 2010 as it attempts to meet ambitious targets on cutting emissions of greenhouse gases.
"We are turning our attention to the review of the Renewables Obligation (RO)," Energy Minister Stephen Timms told an offshore wind conference in London.
"We plan to launch a consultation on the scope and terms of reference (of the review) in the summer of this year," he said.
The RO, which was launched nearly two years ago, forces energy suppliers to supply a rising percentage of their customers with power from green energy sources, giving renewable projects a stable income that they otherwise might not achieve.
The RO requires energy suppliers to take 10.40 percent of their power from green sources by 2010, rising from a quota of 4.3 percent this year and three percent last year.
In December the government extended the scheme out to 2015 after renewable power firms said doubts over long-term policy, beyond the existing system of rising quotas up to 2010, were putting off potential investors in the industry.
"I am well aware of industry's wish to have this work (the review of the RO) concluded as rapidly as possible and to minimise uncertainty," said Timms.
Jake Ulrich, managing director at British utility Centrica (CNA.L: Quote, Profile, Research) Energy, a major investor in renewables, said he hoped the government would leave in place the basics of the RO, or risk creating more uncertainty among investors.
"The government must dampen speculation of a wide-ranging review and ensure the outcome does not disrupt forward prices," he told the same conference.
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