Britain to build 7,000 wind turbines around its coastline

EVERY household in Britain could be powered by off-shore wind farms under major expansion plans being announced by the British government.

Up to 7,000 turbines could be installed around Britain’s coastline in a bid to boost the wind energy produced 30-fold by 2020.

Business Secretary John Hutton admitted the “step change” would alter the face of the waters around the country. But he insisted tough choices had to be made to effect the shift to low-carbon power sources.

“There is the potential, we believe, out there, using the resources that there are around the UK to generate maybe all of the electricity that households need... from offshore wind sources.

“We should see whether we can maximise that potential because it’s obviously in the nation’s interest, in the world’s interest for us to make sure that more of our energy comes from clean sources.”

A mere 2% of Britain’s power comes from renewables, and wind is the source for less than one gigawatt. By 2020 the government hopes it could provide about 34 gigawatts — which using current technology would mean introducing about 7,000 turbines.

Asked whether having a wind installation every half-mile around the coast was acceptable, Mr Hutton replied: “It is going to change our coastline, yes for sure.

“There’s no way of making the shift to low carbon technology without making a change and that change being visible to people.”

Mr Hutton is to announce the “next stage” in the expansion of offshore wind power at a conference in Berlin today.

The move will make a major contribution towards achieving the EU-wide target of renewables providing 20% of energy by 2020, he insisted.

However, Mr Hutton stressed Britain needed a range of clean sources in order to improve its “self-sufficiency”.

That meant a role for nuclear, developing carbon capture technology, and boosting wind and tidal generation.

“I do not want, in 20 years’ time, to find that the question of whether the lights go on in the morning is down to some foreign government or someone else,” he added.

Greenpeace executive director John Sauven said the proposals amounted to a “wind energy revolution”.

“If we are finally to exploit the massive energy resources we have available to us on this windy island, there will now need to be a revolution in thinking in Whitehall, where the energy dinosaurs have prevailed for too long,” he said.

“We need the government to guarantee premium prices for clean electricity so industry can take risks to get tens of thousands of turbines built and installed out at sea.

“And Labour needs to drop its obsession with nuclear power, which could only ever reduce emissions by about 4% at some time in the distant future.”

Carbon Trust chief executive Michael Rea said: “Offshore wind is set for huge growth but this will require substantial investment before it can be realised at this scale. Cost reduction is now the name of the game.”