THE Prime Minister’s conversion to supporting offshore wind power, unveiled in his speech to the Conservative Party virtual conference on Tuesday, October 6, should be encouraging.

However despite all the rhetoric about Britain being a leader in offshore technology, it is the likes of China, Indonesia and Dubai whose yards will benefit from contracts to build the massive turbines and their platforms destined for the North Sea.

The only work UK contractors will get will be to upgrade shore facilities to support erection and maintenance.

Labelling Britain “the Saudi Arabia of wind” Mr Johnson claims offshore wind will power “your kettle, your washing machine, your cooker, your heating, your plug-in electric vehicle... from the breezes that blow around this island”.

What he omits to point out is that the breezes are highly intermittent and to ensure a steady supply will still require a considerable balancing input from more conventional onshore sources including nuclear and gas turbines.

The vision of a “limitless resource” of clean energy from “gusts far out in the deepest waters” contradicts two decades of environmentalists and governments, including the present one, encouraging consumers to reign in electricity usage.

While offshore wind already makes a very significant contribution to the nation’s demand for electric power, and further expansion is needed in the grand scheme of things, this is far from a recipe for plentiful cheap power.

The high price paid for Mr Johnson’s dream will only benefit large scale international suppliers and their shareholders. Britain’s householders and businesses will eventually have to foot the bill.

Renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, and hydro are available onshore at point of use and are ready to be exploited by local communities to power our kettles, washing machines etc.

In addition, local energy plans employing a mix of renewable technologies with some local storage can ensure continuity of supply. All of which has the capacity to encourage local innovation and employment.

Communities could benefit from generating their own power if only the government would get on and back local energy plans, which appear to be missing from the so called Build Back Greener Plan.

Sandy Tod

ACE Settle and area