It comes as the Government set out the most ambitious reforms to the country’s energy system in a generation by unveiling its detailed plan to reach Clean Power by 2030, and bring down bills for people, and for businesses, for good.
Energy experts say delays in securing a connection to the electricity grid are the biggest barrier to rolling out renewables across the country, and Ms Mayer contacted the Energy Secretary about overhauling the grid connection queue to prioritise ready-to-connect clean projects.
All energy schemes which need a connection to the National Grid are currently in a single queue which operates on a "first-come-first-served" basis.
Some projects face waiting times stretching long into the next decade to get connected.
Under the Government’s plan, ministers will strip out projects that are not ready to connect and speed up projects that will help it meet its ambitious clean power goals.
Welcoming the move, Ms Mayer said:
“It might sound a bit techy but ensuring speedier grid connections will make a huge difference in terms of rolling out the renewables we need to at speed to tackle the climate crisis.
“By speeding up the power grid system process to remove stalled projects from the queue, and ensuring clean energy projects can be connected fast, we can get on with building an energy system that can bring down bills for households and businesses for good.”
Leighton Buzzard-based renewable energy company AWGroup, who asked the MP to work to ensure speedier grid connections after she visited their Checkley Wood Turbine near Hockliffe, welcomed the Government plans.
John Fairlie, Managing Director of AWGroup, said:
“For too long, the queue has been blocked by potential projects that are unable to deliver in time for 2030.
"At AWGroup, we have seen shovel-ready projects delayed by out-of-date queue management procedures. We are grateful to Alex Mayer MP for all her support in the realisation of this clean power plan and welcome Government’s announcement today. We look forward to accelerating our investment in clean energy infrastructure to supply local homes and businesses.”
The Government’s plan to get more homegrown clean power to people includes proposals to:
- Speed up decisions on planning permission by empowering planners to prioritise critical energy infrastructure;
- Expand the renewable auction process to stop delays and get more projects connected.
- And clean up the dysfunctional grid connection system by prioritising the most important projects and ending the “first-come-first served” system.