Asked by: Lord Spellar (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Vallance of Balham of 9 December (HL12318), whether the 70 per cent of United Kingdom content applies to only offsite manufactured plant or includes on-site construction costs and materials.
Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
As set out on 9 December (HL12318), Great British Energy-Nuclear's (GBE-N) ambition is for 70% British built products across the Small Modular Reactor (SMR) fleet. GBE-N’s ambition encompasses both on-site and off-site activity.
While it would not be appropriate to speculate at this time on specific commercial contracts, subject to final government approvals and contract signature with Rolls-Royce SMR, GBE-N will continue to consider how the UK supply chain can support the deployment of SMRs.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many members of (1) the Mineworkers Pension Scheme, and (2) the British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme, have pensions in payment valued at (a) under £5000 a year, (b) between £5000 and £15,000 a year, (c) between £15,000 and £30,000 a year, (d) between £30,000 and £50,000 a year, and (e) over £50,000 a year.
Answered by Lord Whitehead - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The information requested is set out in the table below:
Number of members in payment | ||
Annual pension | Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme | British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme |
Under £5,000 | 40,716 | 5,871 |
£5,000 - £15,000 | 49,038 | 11,662 |
£15,000 - £30,000 | 12,869 | 11,858 |
£30,000 - £50,000 | 2,321 | 4,973 |
Over £50,000 | 124 | 2,577 |
Asked by: Pippa Heylings (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to ensure the effectiveness of funding for renewable energy projects through the Contracts for Difference Allocation Round 7.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
An initial budget of £900 million is available for fixed-bottom offshore wind in Allocation Round 7, which is the largest ever initial budget for OFW. The Government has the ability to view unsuccessful bids and adjust the budget later, if it is good value for consumers. The Government has also confirmed budgets of £180m for floating offshore wind projects, £295 million for established technologies such as solar PV and onshore wind, and £15 million for emerging technologies. We expect the budgets and competitive bidding to drive a value for money outcome for billpayers.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of negotiating an emissions trading scheme linkage with the European Union to reduce the costs of achieving net zero.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Linking the UK and EU Emission Trading Schemes (ETSs) is expected to reduce costs for UK businesses by providing a cheaper path to net zero. Access to a larger, more liquid and stable carbon market will provide UK business with greater price certainty which will support investment.
Linking will also deliver a reduction in costs for UK businesses and lower barriers to trade through providing the conditions for an exemption from the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether Drax is contractually required to disclose to the Government where the trees used in the pellets it purchases were cut down.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Biomass generators must currently comply with the reporting requirements of the Renewables Obligation and Contract for Difference (CfD). These include reporting sustainability profiling data for biomass which includes the country of purchase of each fuel consignment. From 2027 under the new Low-Carbon Dispatchable CfD, enhanced reporting obligations will require Drax to report the country of origin, including the identification of each processing plant within the supply chain.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department plans to take to verify the proportion of wood burnt at Drax that is sustainable.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Monitoring and enforcement under the existing Renewables Obligation (RO) and Contract for Difference (CfD) schemes are the responsibility of the Low Carbon Contracts Company (LCCC) and Ofgem respectively, who conduct independent checks to ensure compliance with the sustainability requirements.
Under the new Low-Carbon Dispatchable CfD the monitoring, reporting and verification regime has been enhanced by extending LCCC’s audit rights across Drax’s global supply chain, increasing the audit standard from ‘limited’ to ‘reasonable’ assurance, and requiring sustainability data to be reported down to the level of individual pellet mill facilities. This will provide increased confidence that the biomass used is 100% sustainable.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to reduce constraint payments to renewable energy producers.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The majority of the costs of constraints are driven by turning on expensive gas plants to replace curtailed generation. The current extent of grid constraints reflects years of underinvestment, with new network infrastructure development having lagged the expansion of new generation.
We are already taking action to reduce constraints, with the biggest upgrade to Great Britain’s electricity network in decades, which will also help deliver clean power by 2030.
Upgrading the grid is not a choice, it needs to happen to make sure the grid stays resilient and to get power from where it is generated to where it is needed, so we can connect homes, businesses and industry to generate growth.