The report concludes that current policies proposed by the U.K. department for energy and climate change (Decc) would not deliver emission reductions at lowest cost. ""If we are concerned about cost, then renewables have no part to play in reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80% before 2050. Rather it is gas and nuclear alone that creates the least-cost mix," the report reads.
The U.K. government, however, strongly opposed the findings of the report. A Decc spokeswoman said called the report "short-sighted", claiming it would not allow for a diversified mix of power generation technologies.
A consultation period on support levels for renewable energies in the U.K. energy mix came to an end last month. Meanwhile, the U.K. gas industry continues to lobby for capacity payments to underpin investments in new gas-fired power generation capacity.