Written questions by Coutinho.

Pursuant to the Answer of 11 April 2025 to Question 43723 on Carbon Emissions: Trees, whether it is standard practice for officials in his Department to receive time-limited access to documents when negotiating subsidy arrangements.

DESNZ officials were granted access by Drax to review the KPMG reports in January 2025. These reports were internal fact-finding documents, commissioned by Drax under legal privilege to review their biomass supply chain against the sustainability requirements of existing arrangements. Drax granted DESNZ access to these internal documents which enabled Government to better understand their contents and the conclusions of Ofgem’s investigation, which we support.

If he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the CO2 released annually by Drax Power Station on the ability of the UK to meet the emissions reduction targets included in the Climate Change Committee's Carbon Budgets.

CO2 emissions from the combustion of biomass at Drax Power Station are not included in the assessment of emissions in Carbon Budgets. This is consistent with international guidelines established by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which require CO2 emissions from the combustion of biomass to be accounted for in the land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF) sector of the country in which the biomass was harvested, rather than at the point of release to the atmosphere.

Pursuant to the Answer of 11 April 2025 to Question 43723 on Carbon Emissions: Trees, if he will publish emails where the KPMG report was discussed.

We have determined that it would not be in the public interest to release further information on this issue in this instance. Protecting commercially sensitive information facilitates the frank exchange of information between the private sector and government, and ensures ministers and civil servants can have honest, unfiltered discussions during the policy-making process.

Pursuant to the Answer of 11 April 2025 to Question 43723 on Carbon Emissions: Trees, if he will publish minutes of meetings with officials where the KPMG report was discussed.

We have determined that it would not be in the public interest to release further information on this issue in this instance. Protecting commercially sensitive information facilitates the frank exchange of information between the private sector and government, and ensures ministers and civil servants can have honest, unfiltered discussions during the policy-making process.

Pursuant to the Answer of 29 April 2025 to Question 47816 on Renewable Energy: Electricity Generation, what the annual cost to consumers of the Offtaker of Last Resort scheme has been since 2015.

Since its launch there have been no applications to the OLR scheme and no Backstop PPAs have been entered into. The only costs related to the scheme are the administrative costs incurred by Ofgem. The cost of the scheme for 2024/25 was £26,902. Details of the activities associated with these costs can be accessed here: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/offtaker-last-resort-olr-annual-report-april-2023-march-2024

Whether the Offtaker of Last Resort scheme has been implemented.

The Scheme was introduced on 1 October 2015 and is intended as a last resort to help renewable generators who have an Investment Contract or Contracts for Difference (CFD) contract, who cannot get a PPA through the usual commercial means. Ofgem administer the Offtaker of Last Resort and publish an annual report on the scheme’s operation.

What estimate his Department has made of the annual cost of Distribution Use of System charges since 2002.

The Government does not hold this information. Distribution Use of System (DUoS) charges are paid for by electricity suppliers and distribution connected generatorsand passed onto consumers through electricity bills. Each Distribution Network Operator (DNO) publishes charging statements every year, which are publicly available on their websites. The system is experiencing rising DUoS charges, due partly to the costs of upgrading the network to connect renewable generation and storage. However, the Government does not hold estimates apportioning overall distribution network costs to these generation sources specifically.

What estimate his Department has made of the proportion of Transmission Network Use of System charges that were caused by the (a) expansion and (b) reinforcement required for renewable energy in each year since 2002.

The Government does not hold this information. Transmission Network Use of System (TNUoS) charges recover the cost of installing and maintaining the high-voltage transmission network, which are paid for by electricity suppliers and transmission-connected generators and administered by the National Energy System Operator (NESO). The charges reflect the costs imposed on the network by generators and demand in different locations. NESO publishes annual TNUoS charges here: https://www.neso.energy/industry-information/charging/tnuos-charges#TNUOS-tariffs-and-notifications-of-changes.

What estimate his Department has made of the cost of the Renewable Energy Guarantee of Origin scheme in each year since 2003.

REGO certificates are issued by Ofgem to eligible generators for free, and certificates are then purchased by electricity suppliers to surrender in the Fuel Mix Disclosure process. This has generated a market for the sale and purchase of certificates. The price of REGOs fluctuates, though credible external estimates suggest that the latest spot market price is around £7 a certificate. Ofgem reports 130 million certificates are issued per year, giving an overall market value of around £910m annually.

What estimate his Department has made of the proportion of Distribution Use of System charges that were the result of connecting renewable energy generation assets in each year since 2002.

The Government does not hold this information. Distribution Use of System (DUoS) charges are paid for by electricity suppliers and distribution connected generatorsand passed onto consumers through electricity bills. Each Distribution Network Operator (DNO) publishes charging statements every year, which are publicly available on their websites. The system is experiencing rising DUoS charges, due partly to the costs of upgrading the network to connect renewable generation and storage. However, the Government does not hold estimates apportioning overall distribution network costs to these generation sources specifically.

If she will make an estimate of the potential impact of changes in the cost of (a) electricity, (b) goods and (c) services arising from (i) direct and (ii) indirect support to renewable energy on VAT receipts in each year since 2002.

The Government is committed to tackling climate change. The Climate Change Act (2008) made the UK the first country to introduce a legally binding, long-term emissions reduction target. Since then, the UK has halved its emissions, having cut them by around 53% between 1990 and 2023.The Government has announced a national mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower and accelerate our journey to net zero.As the Government's official independent forecaster, it is for the OBR to consider and report on the fiscal and economic impacts of Government policy decisions made by the Government.

What estimate his Department has made of the proportion of Balancing Services Use of System charges that were caused by the management of renewable energy generation assets in each year since 2002.

Balancing Services Use of System (BSUoS) charges are administered by the National Energy System Operator (NESO). The variable nature of renewable and low carbon intermittent sources of generation can require NESO to undertake additional grid balancing actions. The Government does not hold data apportioning overall balancing costs to these generation sources specifically. NESO publishes BSUoS charges here: Balancing Services Use of System (BSUoS) charges | National Energy System Operator

If he will make an estimate of the potential impact of the smart export guarantee on annual costs to consumers in each year since 2020.

The Smart Export Guarantee is a market-driven mechanism that captures the value of small-scale exported electricity and helps meet net zero commitments at the lowest net cost to consumers and businesses. This means that SEG tariffs are set by energy suppliers and the SEG is not expected to lead to a direct cost on consumer bills.

Whether any Government Departments are members of the Stonewall Diversity Champions Programme.

Government departments are responsible for decisions about whether to buy services from third sector organisations to support equality, diversity and inclusion in their organisations. Currently no government department is a member of Stonewall.

Pursuant to the Answer of 23 January to Question 24699 on Electricity: Artificial Intelligence, if he will publish the terms of reference for European Economic Research Limited's analysis of the future net energy demand of artificial intelligence.

This project was awarded through an open tender process, which concluded in November. As part of this process, the terms of reference for the project were publicly disclosed. Once the tender closed and had been awarded to the European Economic Research Limited, we published a Contract Award Notice, (CAN) on the government Contracts Finder website.

Pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2025 to Question 24699 on Electricity: Artificial Intelligence, what the value is of the contract awarded to European Economic Research Limited to analyse the future net energy demand of artificial intelligence.

This information will be made publicly available the usual way through the Department's annual report and accounts.

Pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2025 to Question 24699 on Electricity: Artificial Intelligence, if he will publish the report by European Economic Research Limited on the future net energy demand of artificial intelligence when it has been received by his Department.

It is DESNZ policy to publish contracted technical work once it has been independently internally peer reviewed. We intend to similarly publish the report by European Economic Research Limited once it is completed in April.

What recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of UK Emissions Trading Scheme 's allowance allocation policy on (a) carbon leakage and (b) the offshoring of emissions.

The provision of Free Allocation under the UK ETS mitigates the risk of carbon leakage and associated offshoring of emissions by reducing industrial sectors’ exposure to the carbon price. The UK ETS Authority is reviewing Free Allocation policy to ensure it targets sectors most at risk of carbon leakage and is currently consulting on this topic, including alignment with the UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. The Authority will assess how Free Allocation interacts with other policies to ensure a holistic approach to carbon leakage mitigation. An Impact Assessment will be published alongside the Government Response to the Free Allocation Review

If he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the AI Opportunities Action Plan on trends in the level of carbon emissions.

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has contracted European Economic Research Limited to analyse the future net energy demand of AI and the National Electricity System Operator (NESO) is investigating the future power consumption of data centres. These assessments will help the Department evaluate the potential impact of AI-driven technologies on energy consumption patterns and their contribution to carbon emissions trend.

If he make an assessment of the potential impact of the AI Opportunities Action Plan on trends in the level of electricity demand.

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has contracted European Economic Research Limited to analyse the future net energy demand of AI and the National Electricity System Operator (NESO) is investigating the future power consumption of data centres. These assessments will help the Department evaluate the potential impact of AI-driven technologies on electricity demand trends.