Indecisions, Indecisions, Indecisions: the Eternal Energy Game
After being unceremoniously dismissed from the key talking points planned for the forthcoming G8 summit some months ago, the recent Queen’s Speech saw climate change tacked quietly back onto the very end of the agenda.
17th May 2013 | Kate Roche: Rolton Group
It was certainly not intended to garner much attention, but its presence was felt by those who had been looking for some sign of the Government’s commitment to the issue. There was, however, no mention of the much-debated decarbonisation target.
Since then, the date of the Energy Bill’s next reading has been confirmed, and will surely stir up a fresh bout of clarion calls for the implementation or rejection of a binding 2030 limit on emissions. One side argues that it is necessary for the security of sustainable investment and the development of technology; the other, headed up by George Osborne, fears that any fixed target will deter the fossil fuel and shale investment upon which we so heavily rely.
The Coalition has so far shown itself to be completely unable to negotiate between the two poles, and as such neither end of the spectrum feels as though it is walking on solid ground. Investor security is weak across the board, and every step forward appears to be hastily followed by several jumps back. Everyone involved shouts about how vital it is for the Government to show a strong degree of decisiveness on the energy issue, but still it flounders around in no man’s land, suffering as yet more time is wasted trying to placate each side rather than spent taking action.
The noise which surrounds energy policy now stands at risk of working to its detriment, simply turning people off the issue and leaving only those with significantly vested interests to thrash it out. This is because the same phrases bounce off the walls in what is now a very tired argument; ‘volatile global market,’ ‘security of supply’, and ‘diminishing capacity’ all make the rounds with varying tones of alarm, only to seemingly end where they began. The removal and re-admittance of climate change in the G8 agenda only further illustrates the problem! I’m sure that the waste in time, resources, and money would make for a frightening infographic; tipping one way and then the other, only to swing back again in a month and again the other way at some later date is not the way to run a country.
As I have written before, and will doubtless conclude again, an integrated and well-considered approach is imperative for the progression of the energy industry, in terms of maintaining both our power supplies and the trust of global investors. No-one is privy to a crystal ball view of the energy mix in ten or even five years, but it does not take an expert to appreciate that something has to give.
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