The number of planning applications for new renewable electricity projects in the United Kingdom reached a four-year high in 2019, rising by 75 percent in the space of three years, the energy consultancy firm px Group announced in a press release on Monday after conducting a study of official government data
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th March, 2020) The number of planning applications for new renewable electricity projects in the United Kingdom reached a four-year high in 2019, rising by 75 percent in the space of three years, the energy consultancy firm px Group announced in a press release on Monday after conducting a study of official government data.
According to the consultancy firm, the number of planning applications submitted for new renewable energy projects, such as solar or wind farms, rose to 269 in 2019, compared to 154 in 2016.
"It goes without saying that as more of these projects get off the ground, the faster the UK can get to a point where clean, green sources provide an even greater share of the UK's energy," px Group's Chief Executive Officer Geoff Holmes said in the press release.
A total of 90 applications submitted to the UK government this past year were for establishing onshore and offshore wind farms, compared to just 47 in 2018, the consultancy firm stated.
According to the National Grid, 2019 was the United Kingdom's cleanest year on record, as the amount of electricity produced by renewable sources outstripped the electricity produced by fossil fuels for the entire year for the first time.
Renewable sources delivered 48.5 percent of the UK's electricity this past year, compared to 43 percent generated by fossil fuels, the National Grid reported on January 1.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has called 2020 a defining year of climate action and has pledged that the UK will take the lead in finding solutions to meet the challenge of climate change. The prime minister has committed the UK to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
The UK will also host the UN Climate Change Conference COP26 in the Scottish city of Glasgow in November.
