Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an estimate of projected annual network constraint costs for (a) 2024, (b) 2025 and (c) 2030.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
National Grid ESO manages network constraints. In 2023, constraint costs were £1.4bn and the volume of balancing services used to manage constraints was around 12TWh. Data are not available on exact timing of curtailment and the split of costs between renewable and gas generators in 2023.
The Government is working with Ofgem and network companies to accelerate network delivery in line with the Winser recommendations and is halving the construction time of new transmission infrastructure from 14 years to 7, delivering the grid capacity needed to alleviate network constraints. The Review of Electricity Market Arrangements consultation considers several options which could help to reduce constraint costs, including locational pricing, electricity storage deployment and establishing constraints markets.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, which consultations (a) published and (b) inherited by her Department are awaiting a response; and when she plans to publish each of those responses.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has inherited or published 35 consultations, for which a response by the department is still outstanding:
The Department will respond to each in due course.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the 2023 UK greenhouse gas emissions, provisional figures, published on 28 March 2024, what assessment she has made of the reasons for the increase in emissions from commercial buildings since 1990; and what steps her Department is taking to help reduce such emissions.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Between 1990 and 2023, provisional statistics show total greenhouse gas emissions from the buildings and product use sectors have fallen by an estimated 28%. However, in the same time period, emissions from commercial buildings have risen by 3% largely due to the use of natural gas for heating. To address this issue, the UK Government is working with industry to understand how to decarbonise commercial buildings in an affordable and appropriate manner, including through supporting energy efficiency improvements, developing the market for heat pumps, and developing heat network capacity. This approach is detailed in the Heat and Buildings Strategy, which can be accessed here.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when she plans to publish a response to the consultation on Introducing a performance-based policy framework in large commercial and industrial buildings, which closed on 9 June 2021.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Government paused the rollout of the operational energy rating pilot scheme but remains interested in exploring the role that operational ratings can play in supporting energy reduction within the wider landscape for decarbonising commercial and industrial buildings.
We continue to engage with stakeholders to understand more about potential options for moving the dial on reducing carbon emissions and Government’s role in this.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when she plans to respond to the consultation entitled Non-domestic Private Rented Sector minimum energy efficiency standards: EPC B implementation, published on 17 March 2021.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
We have reviewed the responses to our consultation on minimum energy efficiency standards in the non-domestic private rented sector. We are working hard to ensure the policy design remains fair and proportionate for landlords and tenants within the current economic climate and to help realise the benefits of energy efficiency, including reduced energy bills, more comfortable and healthier workplaces and greater energy security. We are continuing to engage with commercial building owners and representative groups to understand the different pathways to support decarbonisation and give certainty to the energy efficiency supply chain. We plan to publish the response in due course.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether she has made a recent estimate of the total cost to (a) consumers and (b) the Exchequer of issuing curtailment payments to energy companies in the last 12 months.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The System Operator is responsible for managing constraints on the networks. It does this by curtailing a type of generation, for example wind, and turning up an alternative generation, as needed. Costs are funded through electricity bills, not through the Exchequer. Annual network constraint costs for 2023 were £1.4bn (2023 prices).
To manage the level of constraints on the system and ensure the UK's homes can be powered by clean, green energy in future, government is working with Ofgem, network owners and others to halve the build process from 14 years to 7 through our Transmission Acceleration Action Plan.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps her Department is taking to encourage investment in the energy supply chain industry.
Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The recently published BloombergNEF (BNEF) Energy Transition Investment Trends Report (2023) reported that total public and private investment in UK low-carbon sectors in 2023 reached £60 billion rising from £35 billion in 2022. The Government understands the importance of growing domestic energy supply chains, therefore at Spring Budget 2024 £120m funding to the Green Industries Growth Accelerator (GIGA) was announced, in addition to the £960m already allocated. This will support investments in manufacturing capabilities for the clean energy sectors where the UK has clear strengths: carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS), hydrogen, offshore wind, electricity networks, and nuclear. The Government is also providing up to £160 million to leverage private investment into the port infrastructure required to support floating offshore wind deployment at scale.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on steps to improve the efficiency of processing planning applications for large energy projects.
Answered by Graham Stuart
My Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State has regular discussions with ministerial colleagues on a number of issues. Planning reform is discussed regularly at Cabinet level and there have been major Government announcements recently on this issue as part of the Autumn Statement and Spring Budget.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether she has made an estimate of the number of energy projects waiting to be connected to the national grid.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Data from the Electricity System Operator (ESO) shows that there were 1530 energy projects in the transmission connection queue at the end of February 2024.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps she plans to take to ensure that companies bidding for support under the Contracts for Difference Scheme are not solely reliant on China’s solar photovoltaic supply chain.
Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Renewable supply chain development is a key Government priority. The Government asks that all large renewable projects seeking support through Contracts for Difference submit a Supply Chain Plan to the Government, setting out among other things their commitments to investment in the resilience of their supply chains, including diversification and tackling modern slavery.