Committee questions national energy agencies in race for clean energy
On Wednesday 20 November the newly reappointed Energy Security and Net Zero Committee will hold its first evidence session in Parliament, looking at the role that Great British Energy (GBE) is expected to play in the energy market.
The flagship publicly-owned energy company, “designed to drive clean energy deployment, boost energy independence, create jobs” was announced with an initial £8 billion budget to 2029 as part of major new Government commitments on achieving clean energy.
But with only £100 million earmarked for investment in renewables in the next two years, questions have already been raised about the impact it can have on the Government’s 2030 clean energy target. The Committee will question new Chair of GBE Professor Juergen Maier, including seeking his own assessment of how he is the best person for the job of running the operationally independent national company.
Meeting details
Director at GBE Tim Cullen recently admitted that it is not yet clear how the remit of GBE to invest in clean power projects and infrastructure will sit alongside a newly created National Wealth Fund. Is it being setup in an appropriate way to achieve its ambitions without distorting existing investment?
Will it learn the lessons from previous UK and current EU state-owned companies and be able to drive private investment? Will it have an impact on the core aim of lowering consumer energy bills?
The Committee will also question the Chair at Great British Nuclear (GBN), another national public company, established only about a year ago with the remit to “drive the delivery of new nuclear energy projects in the UK” and contribute to meeting the UK’s legally binding 2050 target for a net zero economy.
How will it “provide better opportunities to build and invest” in nuclear energy and help meet the previous Government’s ambition to deliver 24 GW nuclear generated power capacity by 2050?