Responding Claire Mack, Chief Executive of Scottish Renewables, said:
“The words of Tim Pick, the UK’s outgoing Offshore Wind Champion, represent a rallying cry for this vital sector – and one which, importantly, reflects those calls made by industry for several years now.
“His focus on the importance of grid connections as the key ‘rate-limiting factor’ for our offshore wind sector is correct, as is his appeal to ‘proceed at pace, on almost a wartime footing’ with the expansion of electricity network infrastructure if offshore wind is to deliver anything like its full potential in the UK.
“Other areas which are rightly highlighted include essential reform of regulator Ofgem, whose mandate must include net-zero, and the need for action to catalyse investment in port infrastructure across the country and to recognise inflationary and commodity pressures on projects which are about to bid into this year’s Contracts for Difference round.
“This report is one of a number, including Chris Skidmore MP’s Independent Review of Net Zero, which should give the UK Government pause for thought as it pursues a policy agenda which is not embracing the renewable energy development opportunity in front of us and damaging our economy and environment as well as the attractiveness of this country to the international business community.”
