Nick Boyle, chief executive of Lightsource BP, a joint venture with energy giant BP and Europe’s largest solar maker, said the 50 GW target was “certainly achievable” given the UK market. However, he warned that it would be “extremely challenging”, as upgraded power grids and a more improved design process are needed. Mr Boyle added: “This does not mean I want to build everywhere. “We want it to be faster, not silly. I certainly do not believe, and we as an industry do not believe, that solar parks should be built anywhere. We must have this challenge “do not destroy our green and pleasant land”. “There are many areas in the UK where you can place sensible solar parks – there are too many areas where you can place them in bulk and not offend the masses.” Projects larger than 50 megawatts must currently be approved by the Foreign Minister and not by local authorities. Both Mr Boyle and the industrial group Solar Energy UK have allayed concerns about the loss of agricultural land. Chris Hewett, CEO of Solar Energy UK, said: “If you have a solar farm on land, you can usually use it for dual use, you can graze a little if you want. The earth is [also] usually improves for biodiversity “. “Even if you were building 100 gigawatts of solar energy, it would still be less than 1% of the total land occupied by the country.” A spokesman for the Ministry of Enterprise, Energy and Industrial Strategy said: “Gas is expensive and renewable energy is cheap. Our exposure to volatile fossil fuel prices means we need to produce more cheap, clean renewable energy in the UK. “Solar energy plays an important role in this – with almost 14 GW of solar energy already in the UK system – and we are committed to promoting the continued growth of solar energy over the next decade and beyond. “We continue to work closely with all energy suppliers and our forthcoming energy security strategy will focus on our renewable energy and nuclear capacity, as well as our support for the North Sea oil and gas industry.” Mr Kwarteng vowed on Tuesday that the government’s new energy security strategy would be released “very soon” following reports of delays due to Rishi Sunak, the chancellor who continued to withstand heavy spending commitments. Responding to allegations that Mr Sunak was obstructing the strategy, the Secretary of Operations told Parliament: “When such publications are issued, a number of intergovernmental right-wing circles are required. “We talk to colleagues all the time all over the government, not just at the Treasury, to make sure we can adjust the energy strategy as quickly as possible.”
