Asked by: Llinos Medi (Plaid Cymru - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to pages 37 and 38 of 'Improving the energy performance of privately rented homes: impact assessment', for what reason there is no specific data for Wales.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The analysis in the impact assessment is produced using the Department’s National Buildings Model, which is based on the English Housing Survey and therefore covers England only. The results are scaled to reflect the number of dwellings in Wales, with Wales assumed to follow the overall average. Further details on the modelling approach and the National Buildings Model are set out in Annex B of the Impact Assessment.
The UK government has worked closely with the Welsh government to develop the policy.
Asked by: Llinos Medi (Plaid Cymru - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many privately rented properties in Wales are eligible for the property‑value adjustment exemption set out in the consultation response entitled Improving the energy performance of privately rented homes.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
From 1 October 2030, private rented homes must meet the required standard of EPC C, or have a valid exemption registered, to be let. Government has committed to developing a property-value adjustment exemption for privately rented properties that are valued at less than £100,000. No properties are eligible for the property-value adjustment exemption until 1 October 2030.
Once the exemption is in place, private rented sector properties in Wales valued under £100,000 will be subject to a lower maximum spend requirement. Further guidance on exemptions will be published in due course.
Asked by: Llinos Medi (Plaid Cymru - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the cost of energy standing charges on households in North Wales.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
We are committed to bearing down on the cost of standing charges and continue to work closely with the independent regulator, Ofgem, on this issue.
As a result of action following the Autumn Budget, and shifting the recovery of the Warm Home Discount to unit rates, the average standing charge in the Price Cap from April to end June has come down by £13, and standing charges are lower now than in July 2024.
In addition, on 25 February Ofgem announced the launch of a one-year, lower standing charge tariff pilot with some major suppliers, from April 2026.
Through its Cost Allocation and Recovery Review, Ofgem has also been reviewing how fixed costs, which tend to be funded through standing charges, should be recovered in the future energy system. This includes whether those fixed costs could be recovered in more progressive ways.
Asked by: Llinos Medi (Plaid Cymru - Ynys Môn)
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 impact of lowering the landlord cost cap and introducing low property value exemptions for minimum energy efficiency standards on private renters in Wales.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Government’s response to the consultation on increasing the minimum energy efficiency standard for private rented homes was accompanied by the Department’s Impact Assessment. The assessment provides an estimated impact of the final policy based on a range of data available, including HM Land Registry and property price data available for Wales. The measures included in the final policy are intended to be proportional to help manage the burden placed on landlords and the impact on the rental market, whilst still delivering improved, warmer, cheaper to heat homes for private rented sector tenants.
Asked by: Llinos Medi (Plaid Cymru - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether the Local Power Plan funding for projects in Wales will be delivered through the Internal Market Act.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Through the Local Power Plan, Great British Energy will invest up to £1 billion to support at least 1,000 local and community energy projects across the country by 2030.
Funding for the Plan will be administered by Great British Energy. It will not be delivered through the Internal Markets Act.
GBE will work with the devolved governments to complement existing support and identify new opportunities for collaboration.
Asked by: Llinos Medi (Plaid Cymru - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate he has made of the number of off-grid homes in Wales that are not suitable for heat pump technology.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
While we do not have a specific assessment for Wales, evidence shows heat pumps will work well in most off-gas grid homes.
A home’s suitability to install a heat pump depends on several factors, including having sufficient internal and external space (for the heat pump unit, thermal store and larger radiators), the peak current draw of the grid connection, and the home’s peak heat loss.
We have commissioned research on the costs of different approaches to decarbonising complex housing archetypes, including alternative low carbon heating solutions where required, and we expect to receive results in Spring 2026.
Asked by: Llinos Medi (Plaid Cymru - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate he has made of the number of jobs that will be created by the (a) Awel Y Mor and (b) The Erebus Project will be based in Wales.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department has not made an assessment of the number of jobs that will be created by individual offshore wind projects.
However, securing 8.4GW of offshore wind capacity in Contracts for Difference Allocation Round 7 has unlocked £22 billion in private investment and supports 7,000 skilled jobs in every corner of the country.
The government estimates that the offshore wind sector could support up to 100,000 direct and indirect jobs in Great Britain by 2030. Wales is well placed to benefit, with its clean energy workforce expected to grow by around 110% by 2030 – equivalent to an increase of approximately 10,000 direct jobs from 2023 levels.
Asked by: Llinos Medi (Plaid Cymru - Ynys Môn)
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 has taken to help support the decarbonisation of off-grid homes including the uptake of Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil in homes where heat-pump technology is not viable.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government launched a consultation on 18 November to explore alternative clean heating solutions that may play a role in some homes, including renewable liquid fuels (RLFs) such as hydrotreated vegetable oil.
The consultation will run until 10 February.
Asked by: Llinos Medi (Plaid Cymru - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to table F of his Department's publication entitled Contracts for Difference Allocation Round 7: results, published on 14 January 2026, what is the total megawatt deployment capacity for (a) offshore wind and (b) floating offshore wind in Wales.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The total megawatt deployment capacity for fixed bottom offshore wind in Wales is 775 megawatts and 100 megawatts for floating offshore wind. These projects represent the first successful developments in Wales in over a decade.
Asked by: Llinos Medi (Plaid Cymru - Ynys Môn)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many homes in Wales have received measures under (a) Energy Company Obligation (b) Energy Company Obligation 1 (c) Energy Company Obligation 2 (d) Energy Company Obligation 3 and (e) Energy Company Obligation 4.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The number of unique households in Wales receiving measures under each Energy Company Obligation (ECO) phase between January 2013 and September 2025 is shown in the table below. Each property is counted when receiving an ECO measure for the first time under each phase. The total of 140,439 homes is lower than the sum of the phases as it shows the unique number of households receiving measures across the scheme.
These data have been derived from the Household Energy Efficiency statistics publication where further details on the measures delivered can be found.
Summary table
All ECO schemes | 140,439 |
ECO1 | 42,980 |
ECO2 | 46,753 |
ECO2 Help-to-Heat | 13,519 |
ECO3 | 24,248 |
ECO4 | 27,606 |