Record Rise in England’s Onshore Windfarm Applications

In the year ending March, roughly 45 applications for new onshore windfarms were lodged in England, the highest annual total in a decade. The average monthly capacity proposed rose from about 9 MW before the Labour government took office to around 36 MW at the start of the current year, reflecting a rapid return of renewable-energy developers to the English market.

The Guardian

The increase follows the overturning of the Conservative Party’s de-facto ban on onshore wind, which had been in place since 2015. Labour’s election victory two years ago led to the removal of regulatory barriers, prompting developers to submit proposals that had previously been blocked.

The Guardian

Since the ban’s removal, England’s proposed onshore wind capacity totals 438 MW, far below Wales’ 490 MW and Scotland’s 5,280 MW over the same period. English projects tend to be smaller, with an average of two turbines delivering 8 MW, compared with nine turbines and 59 MW on average in Scotland. Only one English proposal exceeds 100 MW, whereas Scotland has seen 18 such projects.

The Guardian

Tara Singh, chief executive of RenewableUK, highlighted that onshore wind is among the UK’s cheapest new electricity sources, costing roughly half of new gas-fired generation. She noted that new projects can be built quickly, bolstering energy security and shielding the country from volatile global gas prices. RenewableUK estimates the onshore wind supply chain could contribute up to £56 billion to the economy by 2050, with about 70 % of developers’ life-cycle spending occurring in the UK. Community-benefit funds, amounting to £5,000 per megawatt installed, are already supporting local projects, and developers typically reinvest around 37 p of post-tax profit back into their communities.

The Guardian