The boss of one of the world’s biggest energy companies has said governments should abandon expensive “moonshot” green technologies – such as the £1.3bn Swansea tidal project, axed last week – in favour of wind and solar. Ignacio S Galan, chair of Spanish energy giant Iberdrola, which controls Scottish Power in the UK, said the decision on Swansea must see the end of support for what he described as unproven technologies that are a distraction and waste of resources. “Now is not the time for expensive ‘moonshot’ projects that do little to make renewables more affordable, while possessing only limited potential for global growth,” Galan said. “It is time to put a line in the sand. We should accept that some renewable technologies will never get to a level where they can compete with wind and solar.” While investing small amounts to drive down new technology costs was acceptable, high spending on ideas unproven at scale was wasting time in the fight against climate change, he said.
Guardian 2nd July 2018 read more »
