Natural Resources Minister Carl Sargeant today warned that the UK Government’s proposed changes to the Feed in Tariff (FiT) will have a severe impact on the ability to deliver local energy generation and put jobs at risk.
The Minister said he had formally responded to the consultation on the review of FiT carried out by the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) setting out the Welsh Government’s position.
On a visit to the Valley to Coast Housing Association in Bridgend, he said that the changes outlined in the consultation would endanger the UK’s Green Growth credentials and would impact on Wales’ ability to meet its climate change commitments.
Carl Sargeant said:
“Renewable energy is a key part of the Welsh Government’s approach to tackling climate change and increasing prosperity in Wales. The future direction of energy in Wales will be founded upon a flexible and diverse energy mix at all scales.
“Until DECC’s recent announcements, Wales was home to a thriving, well balanced and growing energy and environmental sector. We estimate that in 2013 the renewable energy industry in Wales employed over 3,900 people, and we believe that the uncertainty created around the changes to renewable energy subsidies puts a significant proportion of these jobs at risk.”
The Minister highlighted the project he visited at Valley to Coast as an example of how the proposed changes to the Feed in Tariff would have an impact on local supply chains and jobs.
Valley to Coast has previously installed solar PV to reduce electricity costs for residents, but say plans for further installations are now under review following the proposed reductions in generation tariff under the review of FIT.
Carl Sargeant added:
“In 2013 the energy and environment sector as a whole employed over 30,000 people in Wales, was the second largest sub sector and had some of the strongest growth in employment and turnover since 2006.
“The recent series of UK Government announcements regarding changes to renewable energy subsidies have created a significant level of uncertainty, and could lead to job losses in the sector.”
The Minister will be making these points on a global stage when he attends the 2015 International Climate Change conference in Paris in December. He will show how Wales is successfully combining its focus on a number of key areas to combat climate change and how these changes could have a detrimental affect on our efforts to combat climate change.
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