Chris O'Shea questions wind power efficiency in UK's energy future

Chris O’Shea, the CEO of Centrica, has voiced concerns about the efficiency of wind power and its future role in the UK's energy strategy.

In a recent LinkedIn post, O’Shea pointed out the low utilisation rates of the UK's wind generation capacity, highlighting that only about 15% of this capacity was utilised in the past week, with a yearly average utilisation of 30%. He questioned whether expanding wind power infrastructure would genuinely enhance the energy system or simply lower the efficiency of the existing capacity.

O'Shea also raised doubts about the necessity of subsidies for wind farms, which currently benefit from guaranteed electricity prices. He emphasised the risk of over-reliance on wind power as the UK moves towards a net-zero future, advocating for a balanced mix of energy technologies. 

The post reads: 

"The UK has around 30GW of installed wind generation capacity which has generated 4.41GW of electricity on average in the last week. This means less than 15% utilisation. If you look over the last year, wind has generated 9.43GW, which takes the utilisation up to 30%.

So when we’re looking at the energy system of the future, we need to think carefully about whether focussing too much on building more wind generation will help, or will it simply mean the utilisation of the UK’s wind generation fleet becomes worse? And should we ask why subsidies are needed for wind farms in the form of a guaranteed price for the electricity produced? It’s served us well in the past, and it may well serve us well in the future, but we should at least ask the question.

Whilst wind power is great, we run a real risk if we focus too much on new wind as we look to decarbonise the energy system of the future. A net zero future requires a range of technologies, and a good balance."

Read more: Boss of British Gas owner raises concerns over wind power efficiency