UK: Wind farms could receive £3bn

British Gas parent Centrica in the UK today said it could pump up to £3bn (€3.9bn) into wind farm investments as the industry strives to meet strict new renewable energy targets.

The energy giant said on unveiling its annual results today that it is spending £300m (€398m) this year on ambitious wind farm projects and may spend billions of pounds more over the next few years.

Reports suggest that new European Union targets for renewable energy will require investment in wind power of more than £60bn (€79bn).

The UK has been set a target of sourcing 15% of all its energy from renewables by 2020, which will require 33,000 megawatts of offshore wind to be built.

It is also investing in the development of the UK’s largest wind power project, building the two 90 megawatt wind farms at Lynn and Inner Dowsing off the Lincolnshire coast, which are expected to provide enough power for more than 130,000 homes.

More developments are on the cards, with an application pending to build another farm and two remaining licences for which it can seek planning permission

Centrica said the EU targets could mean “billions more pounds of investment in coming years on top of our existing renewables plans”.

The group said it is also eyeing investment in new nuclear power generation, either through an equity stake or by committing to buy power from the new plants.