Our round-up of the season’s best wind power quotes returns – with a heavy dollop of politics. It seems as though we’re not all singing from the same European hymn sheet, and that there are some wildly diverging views about the way forward. Plus ça change…
“Having seen a year in which the solar industry has been undermined, there are now fears that Government is turning its fire onto the cheapest form of clean energy, onshore wind power by proposing a cut of 25 per cent. In the words of one industry expert, this would kill dead new wind developments which maybe some of the members on the Government benches would like to see.
“Now the Secretary of State has briefed the press that he does not support this, neither do we, so why doesn’t he stand up to his Conservative colleagues who want to kill off the British wind industry?”
UK Shadow Energy and Climate Change Secretary Caroline Flint
“The UK has seen far too much chopping and changing in its renewables policies”
Gaynor Hartnell, Chief Executive of the Renewable Energy Association
“Today the oversupply of emission allowances is proven, the solution exists and the European Commission can legally postpone the quantity of new allowances released on the market. There is no time to wait to take action to incentivise the move away from fossil fuels to renewables. This will benefit Member States by increasing auctioning revenues, as well as the EU industry, which is today increasingly relying on sectors which benefit from carbon pricing”
Rémi Gruet, EWEA’s Senior Regulatory Affairs Advisor for Environment and Climate Policy
“If EU leaders want to create jobs in Europe they should invest in renewable energies. If they want to create jobs in Russia and Algeria they should invest in gas… Investments in renewable energy create more employment in Europe, while reducing the massive transfer of European wealth to fuel exporters”
Christian Kjaer, Chief Executive of the EWEA
It is necessary to act now. MSP [Marine Spatial Planning] will guarantee sea space for offshore renewables and would give the industry more confidence to invest. The EU should draft an MSP Directive or guidelines requiring Member States to implement national sea space planning in cooperation with the other Member States sharing a sea basin”
Dorina Iuga, Senior Project Manager, EWEA
