Focusing instead on making electricity cheaper would speed up the shift from fossil fuels and strengthen Britain’s energy security and competitiveness, said Tone Langengen, the think tank’s Director of Climate and Energy Policy.
She also called for work to restart at Rosebank, Britain’s largest untapped oil field. But she said that the 2050 target for reaching Net Zero should remain.
Her paper, released ahead of tomorrow’s Budget, highlighted curtailment costs as a warning sign in the UK energy system.
These are incurred when wind farms, often in remote locations, generate more power than the grid can safely dispatch. The wind generator is paid to turn down while other generators, nearer demand, are paid to replace it.
Britain has spent more than £1.7 billion this year on curtailment, the paper says. At the same time, businesses seeking new grid connections can face waits of up to 15 years.
Ms Langengen said: “Britain is paying wind farms to reduce their output at the same time as businesses are struggling to get the electricity they need. That is a clear sign that our energy strategy needs to change.”