The fiasco of the renewable energy auction and the halt of offshore wind farm projects has set off alarm bells in the UK and threatens to compromise “net zero” targets. The energy giants decided not to attend the last auction this week because they considered that the prices set by the British Government (the equivalent of 51 euros per megawatt/hour based on 2012 prices) were too low and did not respond to the demands of the sector. , severely affected by inflation and problems in the supply chain. The auction ultimately awarded 3.7 gigawatts of new clean energy projects (solar, onshore wind, tidal and geothermal), compared to 11 gigawatts last year, driven by the growth of offshore wind. Wind already generates 25% of the electricity in the British Isles and surpassed coal in 2016 and nuclear in 2018. Thanks to the growth experienced in the last decade, the United Kingdom has become the leading offshore wind power. in the world (in rivalry with China), with the four largest offshore parks in the world and the potential to become “the Saudi Arabia of the wind”, in the words of former “premier” Boris Johnson. The arrival of Rishi Sunak to Downing Street in October last year, however, has meant a “reversal” in environmental and energy policies. Zac Goldsmith resigned last June as undersecretary of the Environment citing the “climate apathy” of Sunak, who has given the green light to the first coal mine in the United Kingdom in decades and new licenses for oil and gas exploration in the Sea from North. The former president of COP27 Alok Sharma has also been quite critical of the “premier’s” management, pressured by the hard wing of the Conservative Party to lower the “net zero” objectives. Sunak’s recent decision to amend planning laws to allow more onshore wind farms to be built has been interpreted as a last-ditch, insufficient attempt to make up for lost ground. The alarms actually went off during the summer, when the Swedish company Vattenfall decided to stop construction of the Norfolk Boreas wind farm, which would have generated enough energy to supply 1.5 million homes. The energy giants had been warning for months of the problems facing the sector (with an increase in costs of around 40%) and demanding tighter prices so that the projects were viable. “What has happened must be interpreted as a call to attention to the Government,” said Keith Anderson, executive director of Scottish Power, a subsidiary of Iberdrola and one of the main promoters of the “boom” of offshore wind power in the United Kingdom. “We just missed a multi-billion dollar opportunity to provide clean energy… Our record is unmatched when it comes to delivering big projects on time. But this time the numbers didn’t work out” “We’re facing the biggest disaster in years,” warned Ed Miliband, spokesman for the Labor opposition on energy policy. “The Conservative Party cannot throw away a sector that has been the jewel of our energy system… The notices have been on the ministers’ table for months, but this Government does not understand the ‘green spirit’ and it is too weak. What has happened is the result of complacency and incompetence.” Absent Sunak, traveling to India for the G20 summit, Under Secretary for Energy and Climate Change Graham Stuart glossed over the “puncture” of offshore wind, noting the awarding of “a record number of solar, onshore wind, tidal and, for the first time, geothermal energy projects. “What happened this year should ring the bells within the Government,” replied Dan McGrail, at the head of RenewableUK. “Energy security and net-zero goals will only be possible with offshore wind as the backbone of our future energy system.” “We need urgent action to rebuild confidence in the industry,” McGrail warned. “The projects that have been in the dry dock this year could have supplied 8 million British homes and saved consumers more than 2,000 million pounds a year (2,150 million euros) compared to the cost of electricity generated with gas”. Installed wind power capacity in the UK is currently 28 gigawatts, half on land and half offshore, at increasing distances from shores thanks to floating turbines. The commitment of the British Government had been to reach 50 gigawatts in 2030.