The UK Government has announced the launch of a partnership between the newly formed state-run Great British Energy (GB Energy) and the Crown Estate to boost investment in renewable energy and ensure energy security.
According to a government press release, the partnership will leverage the Crown Estate’s experience in rolling out renewable projects, specifically wind farms, while GB Energy will bring the heft of the state to set out supportive industrial policy.
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The press release stated that the agreement will “see the public sector taking on a new role undertaking additional early development work for offshore wind projects”, lowering risk for developers, speeding up development processes and attracting private sector investment. The Crown Estate, which owns the majority of the UK’s seabed, on which it offers offshore wind leasing, will provide “long-established expertise to the partnership”.
The Crown Estate recently reported a record $1.42bn (£1.1bn) profit from offshore wind leasing.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the partnership will “drive up to £60 billion in investment into the [energy] sector, turbocharging our country toward energy security, the next generation of skilled jobs, and lowering bills for families and business”.
The Crown Estate claimed that the partnership will lead to 20–30GW of new offshore wind developments by 2030. The Labour Government says that GB Energy, which aims to invest in energy projects across the UK, will be owned by British taxpayers and backed with £8.3bn of government funding. The enterprise will be headquartered in Scotland and chaired by Juergen Maier, former CEO of Siemens UK.
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By GlobalDataEnergy secretary Ed Miliband said: “Great British Energy comes from a simple idea – that the British people should own and benefit from our natural resources. Investing in clean power is the route to end the UK’s energy insecurity, and Great British Energy will be essential in this mission.”
“The agreement with the Crown Estate will lead to more investment, cleaner power, more energy security, and is a statement of intent that it will be a permanent and transformative institution for our country.”
Through adding renewable energy capacity, the government hopes that GB Energy will make the UK energy independent. In 2022, the UK imported 37% of its primary energy. In the early 2010s, this figure was at nearly 50%. The UK was a net exporter in the 1990s – the last time it can be said the union of nations was energy independent.
Reacting to the announcement, Sarah Merrick, founder and CEO of Ripple Energy, an organisation that helps UK consumers access clean energy, said: “It is clear cooperative owned energy has the potential to accelerate our transition to clean power, and we look forward to working alongside GB Energy to unlock this.”
