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New offshore wind power is now (much) cheaper than nuclear

Posted by Mal Chadwick - 11th September 2017


This is huge. New auction results out today show that the price set for new offshore wind contracts has fallen by more than 50% since 2015, making it significantly cheaper than nuclear. It’s very likely that offshore wind power will keep getting cheaper too.

But while this good news is splashed all over the media, the government’s energy policy still hasn’t quite caught up.  

Even though the government says it supports offshore wind, right now, the Prime Minister still plans to commit billions of pounds of bill payers’ money to nuclear, and she still backs a big roll out of fracked gas.

We must urgently remind Theresa May that she should listen to the evidence about proven, lower-cost renewables, and respect what the public wants . That means backing clean, sustainable energy, not more nuclear and fossil fuels.

Around the world, renewables have become cheaper and scaled up faster than anyone predicted.

Around the world, renewables have become cheaper and scaled up faster than anyone predicted. In the UK, offshore wind beat its own cost reduction target four years early – thanks to huge innovation and increases in turbine efficiency. UK offshore turbines are already generating enough electricity to match the needs of four million homes, and the industry currently provides full time employment for around 10,000 people.

At moments like these, when clean energy is headline news, the government should be feeling the pressure to change course on its energy policy. So can you help turn up the pressure? Almost 100,000 people have called on the Prime Minister to back clean power in the UK. 

UK offshore turbines are already generating enough electricity to match the needs of four million homes

Building a world that’s free from the threat of climate change is at the heart of so many campaigns we’ve worked on together. Over the years, Greenpeace supporters and activists have helped to block new coal plants and stand up to the fracking industry. But today’s wind power breakthrough is a chance to show the government that they can – and must – choose a better path. Let’s make sure they can’t ignore this.

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Article Tagged as: Energy, Featured