Tag: Alan Whitehead

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2015-12-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what recent discussions her Department has had with the Canadian Department of Natural Resources on the joint Statement of Co-operation with Canada on Carbon Capture and Storage.

Andrea Leadsom

Officials from the Department, as well as colleagues in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, are in regular contact with their Canadian counterparts on this and other issues related to Carbon Capture and Storage.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2015-12-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much overspend against original estimates within the levy control framework has arisen from variations in (a) performance of offshore wind, (b) levels between strike price and reference price and (c) variations in allocations feed in tariff payments for solar PV installations in each of the last three years.

Andrea Leadsom

We do not break down published information on components of Levy Control Framework (LCF) spend to the level of detail requested, due to potential disclosure of commercially confidential information.

On 25 November 2015, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) published LCF projected spend of just under £9bn in 2020/21 (see Tables 1 and 2 below)¹. Between the projections Government published in November 20142 and this forecast, we have undertaken analysis to make changes to many assumptions, including technology-specific factors (including offshore wind), fossil fuel prices and electricity demand3. Collectively, changes in these factors have all affected overall estimates of LCF spend. However, we do not provide published estimates of how much is attributable to each individual factor. DECC will publish a further update to its projections, including the underpinning assumptions, in 2016.

Annex A

Table 1: OBR November 2015 main projections were as follows:

Policy (£m, nominal prices)	2015/16	2016/17	2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21
RO	3,850	4,615	5,375	5,855	6,035	6,230
FiTs	1,325	1,515	1,700	1,880	2,055	2,220
CfDs	15	225	545	1,095	2,225	2,805
Total	5,190	6,355	7,620	8,830	10,315	11,255

Figures are rounded to the nearest five million pounds. Totals may not sum due to rounding.

Table 2: OBR November 2015 main projections in 2011/12 prices:

£m, 2011/12 prices	2015/16	2016/17	2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21
RO	3,360	3,990	4,555	4,820	4,820	4,820
FiTs	1,155	1,310	1,440	1,550	1,640	1,720
CfDs	15	210	500	980	1,950	2,415
Total	4,530	5,505	6,495	7,350	8,415	8,955

Figures are rounded to the nearest five million pounds. Totals may not sum due to rounding.

[1] Note that OBR publishes figures in nominal terms, as opposed to our figures which are in 2011/12 real prices. Both sets of figures are attached at Annex A

2 Annual Energy Statement, page 73, https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/371388/43586_Cm_8945_print_ready.pdf

3 Data on fossil fuel prices and electricity demand assumptions have recently been published online at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fossil-fuel-price-projections-2015 and https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/updated-energy-and-emissions-projections-2015 respectively.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2015-12-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what level of actual or projected overspend against original projections of expenditure under the Levy Control Framework she has identified for each year from 2014 to 2018; and in which of those years overspend has exceeded the 20 per cent headroom within the Levy Control Framework agreement between her Department and HM Treasury.

Andrea Leadsom

The Office for Budget Responsibility published updated projections on spending under the Levy Control Framework on 25 November:

http://budgetresponsibility.org.uk/economic-fiscal-outlook-november-2015/.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2016-04-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, when she plans to publish the impact assessment relating to her Department’s consultation on further reforms to the Capacity Market, published on 1 March 2016.

Andrea Leadsom

We are currently reviewing the responses to the 1 March consultation on further reforms to the Capacity Market and will be publishing a Government response shortly. An impact assessment will be published alongside the Government response.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2015-11-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, under what timetable she will announce the mechanism for ensuring that hydraulic fracturing cannot be conducted from wells that are drilled at the surface of sensitive areas.

Andrea Leadsom

On 4 November 2015, the Government set out proposals to ensure that hydraulic fracturing cannot be conducted from wells drilled at the surface of specified protected areas. [1] The proposals are now subject to consultation with key stakeholders, including industry and non-governmental organisations.

[1] See https://www.gov.uk/guidance/oil-and-gas-licensing-rounds#surface-development-restrictions

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2016-04-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what guidance she plans to provide to the oil and gas industry on the definition of satisfactory commercial return used in her Department’s report, Maximising economic recovery strategy for the UK, published in January 2016.

Andrea Leadsom

The published MER UK Strategy included, in its annex, a definition of “satisfactory expected commercial return”. Any guidance for industry would be an Oil and Gas Authority matter and they will work with industry to support effective implementation of the MER UK Strategy. The Secretary of State does not intend to issue further guidance.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2015-11-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether she plans to bring forward legislative proposals that hydraulic fracturing cannot be conducted from wells that are drilled at the surface of sensitive areas.

Andrea Leadsom

On 4 November 2015, the Government set out proposals to ensure that hydraulic fracturing cannot be conducted from wells drilled at the surface of specified protected areas.¹ The proposed restrictions would be delivered through the inclusion of a licence condition in new Petroleum Exploration and Development Licences (PEDLs) and the development of a policy statement designed to inform the approval process for programmes submitted for approval under existing PEDLs.

The proposals are now subject to consultation with key stakeholders, including the industry and non-governmental organisations.

[1] https://www.gov.uk/guidance/oil-and-gas-licensing-rounds#surface-development-restrictions

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2016-04-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if it is her policy for the oil and gas industry to include employment costs in interpreting paragraph 29 of her Department’s paper, Maximising Economic Recovery Strategy for the UK.

Andrea Leadsom

Any guidance for industry would be an Oil and Gas Authority matter and they will work with industry to support effective implementation of the MER UK Strategy. My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State does not intend to issue further guidance.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2015-11-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will establish an examination of objections to her departmental minute of 21 October 2015 including the entering into contracts regarding the Hinkley Point C power station that could give rise to liabilities.

Andrea Leadsom

I will be writing to hon. Members who have signed EDM 619, in which I will respond to the objection. I will deposit a copy of the response in the Libraries of the House.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Whitehead on 2016-04-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 18 April 2016 to Question 33974, what regard she has given to to Section 14 of the Cabinet Office publication, Guide to making legislation, when determining the relative timing of issuing the impact assessment and the closure of the consultation on further reforms to the Capacity Market.

Andrea Leadsom

Section 14 of the Cabinet Office ‘Guide to making legislation’ states that Impact Assessments are generally required for all UK Government interventions of a regulatory nature. The latest version of the ‘Better Regulation Framework Manual’, in its definition of “Regulation”, clarifies that Regulation does not include tax and spending decisions.

The Capacity Market, and the proposals outlined in the consultation on further reforms to the Capacity Market, is classified as ‘Tax and Spend’. Therefore Section 14 does not apply to this policy and a consultation stage Impact Assessment is not needed. The Government will, however, publish a final Impact Assessment alongside its response to the recent consultation.