A new paper from the Net Zero Watch demonstrates conclusively renewables increase electricity bills — indeed, it is almost impossible that adding a new wind farm to the grid would ever reduce consumer prices.
The author of the paper, Net Zero Watch director Andrew Montford, outlines a series of effects that a new wind farm will have on bills, showing that in each case, households will take a financial hit. [emphasis, links added]
As Mr Montford explains:
“In order to reduce bills, a new generator generally has to force an old one to leave the electricity market — otherwise there are two sets of costs to cover. But with wind power, you can’t let anything leave the market, because one day there might be no wind.”
But as well as adding excess capacity to the grid, renewables also have a series of other effects, each of which will push bills up further.
Mr Montford says:
“Renewables need subsidies, they cause inefficiency, they require new grid balancing services that need to be paid for; the list of all the different effects is surprisingly long. There is only one way a wind farm will push your power bills, and that’s upwards.“
The paper is entitled The Six Ways Renewables Increase Electricity Bills. It is available in plain text below or can be downloaded as a PDF by clicking on the cover image.
