Every parliamentary written question tabled by Richard Holden this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 61–66 of 66 · Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
Pursuant to the Answer of 26 July 2024 to Question 1981 on Electricity: Infrastructure, whether his Department has had such discussions in the period since the publication of the most recent quarterly list of meetings.
I refer the hon Member to the answer I gave to UIN 1981. A record of Ministerial meetings is updated periodically on Gov.UK.
What estimate he has made of the (a) amount of oil and gas that the North Sea will produce in each year until 2060 and (b) tax revenue generated from that oil and gas (i) directly from North Sea oil taxes and (ii) in taxes from employment; how much oil and gas will need to be imported each year between now and 2060; and from which countries that oil and gas will be imported from.
The North Sea Transition Authority publishes UK oil and gas production projections to 2050 and the OBR’s latest forecasts for oil and gas tax revenues up to 2028/29 was published in the March 2024 Economic and Fiscal Outlook. Future years will be included in future forecasts. Tax revenues from oil and gas employment will be included under forecasts for Income Tax and National Insurance, which are not separated by industry. The Energy Security Plan Update, published in December 2023, included an assessment of the role of imports in meeting our domestic gas demand until 2050. The department also publishes projections of the UK’s future demand for oil (under existing and near-final policy) and monitors both UK production and demand as part of the regular departmental output. These assessments will be updated in due course to reflect the new government's policy.
How much coal is (a) required annually by the UK heritage rail sector and (b) produced in the UK; which countries the non-UK supplies originate from, by annual tonnage; and what assessment he has made of the comparative CO2 impact of (i) importing coal from overseas and (ii) domestically producing coal.
The Department does not hold specific data on coal and the heritage rail sector. Breakdowns of coal usage, production and imports are available in the Digest of UK Energy Statistics (DUKES) - https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/solid-fuels-and-derived-gases-chapter-2-digest-of-united-kingdom-energy-statistics-dukes The source of coal for use in heritage steam and other industries is a private matter for the organisations involved. The coal extraction industry is in decline in the UK and there is currently only one commercial coal mine in operation. We do not intend to grant new coal licences.
If he will make an estimate of the amount of solar energy generated by ensuring that five per cent of (a) industrial and (b) commercial roofs are covered with solar panels.
The Government does not take a prescriptive approach to the amount of rooftop solar deployment required, nor to the mix between installation on domestic and non-domestic properties. Therefore, no such estimate has been made. However, the Government is clear that rooftop solar will play an important role in achieving its ambition of tripling existing solar capacity by 2030. Further details will be included in the upcoming publication of the Solar Roadmap.
Whether he has had discussions with his German counterpart on the potential impact of an underground first policy towards new electricity infrastructure.
Details of Ministers’ meetings with external individuals and organisations are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK.
If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of an underground first approach to new electricity infrastructure connecting offshore North Sea wind farms to Tilbury.
Proposed changes to the energy National Policy Statements (NPSs) were consulted on between 30 March 2023 to 23 June 2023 under the previous government. Following this a revised version of the National Policy Statement for electricity networks infrastructure was designated on 17 January 2024. This sets out that overhead lines should be the strong starting presumption for electricity networks developments in general, except in nationally designated landscapes where undergrounding is the starting presumption. The government does not make assessments for specific projects until they come to the Secretary of State for final planning decision.