Quicken shift from fossil fuels
Major UK-based companies on Friday urged the government to accelerate the nation's shift away from fossil fuels for electricity generation, amid turmoil over surging gas prices.
The 14 firms -- including energy supplier Octopus, telecoms operator BT and supermarket chain Co-op -- wrote a joint letter to Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng calling for a rethink.
"We are writing to urge the government to (commit) to the full decarbonisation of UK electricity generation by 2035," read the letter, which was organised by environmental think-tank Green Alliance.
The new target would require annual investments of up to 14 billion ($19.2 billion, 16.3 billion euros) per year in renewable energy, they added.
Britain, which hosts the COP26 United Nations climate summit in Glasgow in November, aims to reduce its carbon emissions to net zero by 2050.
"As COP26 approaches, we believe the time is right for the UK to signal an end to the use of unabated fossil fuels in the power sector, claiming another historic first," the letter added.
"There is now a clear pathway to delivering emissions-free electricity.
"Unabated refers to fossil fuels whose emissions have not gone through any filtering process.In response to the letter, the government insisted it had a successful track record on the matter.
"The UK has been very successful in decarbonising electricity generation - emissions from the sector have halved since 2015, and solar and wind are now cheaper than existing coal and gas power plants in much of the world," read a government statement.
"Gas generation currently plays a key role in keeping the electricity system secure and stable and we are actively taking steps to bring forward low carbon technologies that are capable of replicating this role.
"However, UK electricity generation group Drax had revealed Thursday that Britain has been forced to run coal-fired power stations in order to secure energy supplies in recent weeks amid the chronic gas crisis. Wholesale natural gas prices in Britain soared to record peaks last week, sparking fears of rocketing domestic energy bills as demand peaks during the cold northern hemisphere winter.
Britain is particularly exposed to Europe's ongoing energy crisis due to its reliance on natural gas to generate electricity.
The price of European gas futures has more than doubled since May.
Source: www.thedailystar.net
