Davey defends investment in UK energy amid blackout warnings
ED DAVEY yesterday defended the investment climate for the UK energy sector, amid industry warnings that a competition probe into the market will delay projects and increase the risk of blackouts.
“We have huge amounts of companies wanting to invest,” the energy secretary said on the BBC’s Sunday Politics. “If you look at independent analysis, [it says] Britain is one of the best places to invest in energy in the world… We’re seeing an investment renaissance in energy in this country.”
Davey’s comments follow the regulator Ofgem’s decision to refer competition between the energy retailers for a full-scale investigation by the new Competition and Markets Authority watchdog.
Centrica boss Sam Laidlaw and a number of analysts have warned that uncertainty caused by the probe would delay investment in power plants and that the decreased supply would raise the possibility of the lights going out.
Davey yesterday said there were “a whole range of other measures” in place to prevent blackouts.
“We’re going to keep the lights on, that’s for clear. From day one we’ve been pushing investment up massively,” Davey said.