Press release

Solar energy central to renewables expansion

Sensitively-sited solar PV energy will be central to the growth of renewables in Britain, Minister Greg Barker said today.

From:
Department of Energy & Climate Change and The Rt Hon Gregory Barker
Published
8 October 2013
This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government
SolarPV panels on the roof of a house.

Sensitively-sited solar PV energy will be central to the growth of renewables in Britain, Energy and Climate Change Minister Greg Barker said today.

Installed solar PV capacity has increased 25 fold since the end of 2010. The new Solar PV Energy Roadmap sets out how the Government will work with businesses and industry to build on this unprecedented growth.

Energy and Climate Change Minister Greg Barker said:

“The Coalition is committed to delivering the clean and reliable energy supplies that the country needs, at the lowest possible cost to consumers.

“Solar PV can play a central role in meeting this challenge. It’s a genuinely exciting energy technology which has already seen rapid growth and enjoys strong public support. I want this growth to continue and to help us push further ahead in the global race – but new solar installations must be sensitive to public opinion and mindful of wider environmental and visual impacts.”

The “Roadmap to a Brighter Future” sets out the vision for the future of solar PV ahead of the UK’s first ever Solar PV strategy, which will be published in spring next year.

The Roadmap confirms that new solar PV installations will need to be appropriately sited, give proper weight to environmental considerations such as landscape, heritage and local amenity, and provide opportunities for communities to influence decisions that affect them. The impacts of deployment on grid systems balancing, grid connectivity and financial incentives will also have to be considered, ensuring the challenges of deploying high volumes of solar PV are addressed.

Energy and Climate Change Minister Greg Barker will today launch the new vision for solar PV at the UK’s largest solar energy event – Solar Energy UK 2013 – at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Birmingham. The Minister will also see first-hand the UK’s largest roof top solar PV array.at the Bentley factory in Crewe.

The latest public opinion monitor from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) shows solar has 85 per cent acceptance – the highest of all renewable technologies.

Notes for editors:

  1. “Roadmap to a Brighter Future” can be found on GOV.UK

  2. DECC will publish a full Solar PV Strategy in spring next year.

  3. Energy and Climate Change Minister Greg Barker will be in Birmingham and Crewe on Tuesday 8 October 2013 to launch the Government’s Solar PV Energy Roadmap and see first-hand the UK’s largest roof top solar PV array. The Minister will be available for photo opportunities and interviews during his visit.

  4. Installed solar PV capacity increased from 94 MW at the end of 2010 to 2,413 MW at the end of June 2013.

Updates to this page

Published 8 October 2013

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