Reform UK has told Britain’s biggest wind and solar developers it would end their access to a clean energy subsidy scheme if it won power.
Deputy leader Richard Tice has written to firms giving them “formal notice” that the party would axe deals aimed at offering sustainable generators protection against market volatility.
The Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme sees developers guaranteed a fixed price for electricity – independent of the wholesale price – in the hope of encouraging companies to invest in renewable projects.
In a letter on Wednesday to companies including Octopus Energy and SSE Renewables , Mr Tice claimed “there is no public mandate for the real-world consequences” of the clean power agenda.
If Reform won an election, he said “we will seek to strike down all contracts signed under AR7” – the upcoming allocation round for CfDs.
“Let me be clear: if you enter bids in AR7, you do so at your own risk. The political consensus that has sheltered your industry for nearly two decades is fracturing.”
He added that participation in the upcoming CfD auction “carries significant political, financial and regulatory risk” for company shareholders.
Climate analysts said the move would drive away investment and put British jobs in jeopardy.
The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) said: “Polling shows the public see clean energy as the number one growth sector for the UK.
“Arguing against British renewables is arguing for more foreign gas, which will increasingly come from abroad as the North Sea continues its inevitable decline – a geological fact.
“Ripping up long-term policies and changing agreed contracts is likely to destroy the UK’s credibility as a solid place to invest and with it, leave us more reliant on gas from abroad whose price we have no significant control over.”
Labour said the letter showed Reform was “actively trying to discourage businesses from investing in clean energy in the UK – leaving bills higher for families, threatening hundreds of thousands of good jobs across the country and putting our energy security at risk.”
“They are disgracefully trying to undermine the UK’s national interest,” a party spokesman said.
Mr Tice’s letter followed a Government decision to allow offshore wind farms to be able to apply for the energy contracts while they are still waiting for full planning consent in a bid to hasten development.
Officials have said changes to the scheme will include increasing the length of contracts from 15 years to 20 years for offshore wind, onshore wind and solar projects.
The letter also came shortly after Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said greater use of CfDs would cut bills for households by breaking the link between electricity costs and the price of gas.
He said: “We’re all paying that higher gas price in our bills, even though most of the energy we’re using comes from much cheaper, renewable sources.”
Sir Ed also accused Reform leader Nigel Farage of peddling “myths” about net zero and vowing to challenge “snake oil sales” with “thought through” policy.
