Will Britain’s new energy strategy keep the lights on?

Today’s Energy Security Strategy puts energy security at the heart of the debate over energy and environmental policy, where it always should have been. There is little question that the Russian invasion of Ukraine has brought about a big change to the tone of energy policy, but will today’s announcements really wean us off Russian oil and gas, and when? Moreover, will they ensure that we can keep the lights on as the government continues to commit itself to a policy of net zero carbon emissions by 2050?

Here is a summary of the main points:

24 GW of installed nuclear power by 2050

The fact that the Prime Minister chose to launch today’s energy security strategy at the embryonic Hinkley C nuclear power station emphasises that this is the single biggest change in the government’s strategy: rather than allow the nuclear industry to wither, it now wants a huge expansion, with ‘up to 24 GW’ of installed power by 2050.