UK to Boost Solar Energy Projects Under New Labour Leadership

London Mayor Sadiq Khan (r) and shadow energy secretary Ed Miliband walk by rooftop solar panels on the Stoke Newington School in north London during a visit to announce a new climate plan on April 12, 2024. Victoria Jones / PA Images via Getty Images

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Under new Labour leadership, the UK is focusing on renewable energy advancement with the approval of solar farm projects and new rules for solar panels.

The UK’s Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero Ed Miliband has recently approved three major solar farm projects that had been previously denied by officials in the conservative Tory party, The Guardian reported.

The newly approved projects include the Gate Burton project, which will have 530 megawatts of solar capacity plus battery storage. As the BBC reported, this solar farm alone could provide enough clean electricity to power 160,000 homes.

Additionally, the approvals include the Mallard Pass Solar Farm, which is expected to have up to 350 megawatts of capacity, and the Sunnica Energy Farm, which will have a maximum output of 500 megawatts.

A local county councillor near the slated Gate Burton Energy Park site noted local complaints about the project, particularly because of a loss of agricultural land. But the decision letter from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero noted that the loss of agricultural land for this project would be very minor and was ultimately an important trade-off in order to establish more clean energy.

“The Secretary of State concludes that the Proposed Development will make a substantial contribution to the urgent need for utility scale solar photovoltaics, will generate up to 530 MW and result in considerable carbon savings, supporting the trajectory to net zero,” David Wagstaff, OBE (Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) Head of Energy Infrastructure Planning, wrote in the decision letter. “The Secretary of State therefore attributes substantial positive weight to the need for the development, inclusive of climate change.”

As Electrek reported, the approval of these three solar farm projects will provide enough clean energy capacity to power around 400,000 homes, and the added capacity of these three projects alone is around two-thirds of the solar capacity installed in the UK in 2023.

Miliband and the Energy Department have also announced plans to establish updated rules for rooftop solar power that would make it easier to either install solar panels on existing homes or for homebuyers to purchase newly built homes with solar panels.

“I want to unleash a UK solar rooftop revolution,” Miliband said, as reported by The Guardian. “We will encourage builders and homeowners in whatever way we can to deliver this win-win technology to millions of addresses in the UK so people can provide their own electricity, cut their bills and at the same time help fight climate change.”

Last week, Miliband published his priorities as the energy secretary, including to reduce energy costs and improve energy independence via renewables by 2030 and to lead on international climate action.

The same week, the new Labour leadership reversed a ban on new onshore wind farm projects, which had been in effect since 2015, The Guardian reported.

“Delivering our clean power mission will help boost Britain’s energy independence, save money on energy bills, support high-skilled jobs and tackle the climate crisis,” the UK government shared in a policy statement. “We are therefore committed to doubling onshore wind energy by 2030. That means immediately removing the de facto ban on onshore wind in England, in place since 2015. We are revising planning policy to place onshore wind on the same footing as other energy development in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).”

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