---
Sent From Bloomberg Mobile MSG
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
U.K. May Miss Carbon Target by Delaying Policy, CBI Lobby Says
2010-08-08 23:01:00.4 GMT
By Kari Lundgren
Aug. 9 (Bloomberg) -- The U.K. will not meet carbon
emission and energy security targets if the government delays
decisions on policy planning, the Confederation of British
Industry said.
As much as 150 billion pounds ($238 billion) of private
investment is at risk because the government energy policy is
unclear, the group said today in a statement. A plan to replace
the Infrastructure Planning Commission with a Major
Infrastructure Unit is of particular concern, the group said.
"Energy companies are unable to get the ball rolling on
new infrastructure projects when it is unclear how the future
planning regime will work," CBI Deputy Director-General John
Cridland said in the statement.
The U.K. has pledged to get 15 percent of its energy from
renewable sources by 2020, a sevenfold jump from 2008, and
reduce carbon-dioxide emissions by 80 percent below 1990 levels
by 2050. As much as 1 trillion pounds of investment may be
needed over the next two decades to replace and upgrade power
systems and cut emissions at factories, homes and
transportation, according to a June 29 report by the Green
Investment Bank Commission.
Britain's newly-elected government, led by Prime Minster
David Cameron, scrapped the IPC in June, saying it would create
a fast-track planning unit with greater community involvement.
Energy and Climate Change Minister Chris Huhne has also said the
country needs a "meaningful carbon price" to underpin clean
energy investments, including the building of nuclear plants.
Other issues that need to be addressed by the end of
February include speeding up the development of carbon capture
and storage technologies and greater clarity on electricity
market reform, the CBI said. The government needs to have
completed consultations on a carbon floor price by that time,
the lobby group said.
For Related News and Information:
U.K. power market stories: TNI UK PWRMARKET <GO>
Top energy news: ETOP <GO>
U.K. electricity prices: ELEU <GO>
--Editors: Jonas Bergman, Reed Landberg
To contact the reporter on this story:
Kari Lundgren in London at +44-20-7073-3442 or
klundgren2@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Will Kennedy at +44-20-7073-3603 or
wkennedy3@bloomberg.net.
