Electricity barrier: net zero climate policy means the UK housing crisis is getting worse

Electricity transmission [credit: green lantern electric]

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If there isn’t enough power for the new homes, where’s the power for all the soon-to-be mandatory electric vehicles supposed to come from? Net zero policy by climate obsessives is busy degrading the entire power grid to an increasingly part-time system. This is just one of the knock-on effects.
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Our inadequate electricity network is stopping the building of thousands of new homes. And the necessary move to low-carbon heating and cars is only increasing demand, says The Guardian.

Oxford has a severe housing problem. With house prices 12 times the average salary, it has become one of the least affordable cities in the country. Its council house waiting list has grown to more than 3,000 households, with many having to live in temporary accommodation.

An obvious solution is to build more homes, but those trying to do this face a big barrier: electricity.

“When I talk to developers or potential developers, one of the first questions they now ask me is about grid capacity,” says Susan Brown, leader of Oxford city council.

With housing developments competing for power against energy-hungry tech companies and the city’s increasingly electrified transport network, connection prospects are a matter of concern for housebuilders.

“The problem [for developers] is securing sufficient energy, and the time it takes to connect to the grid,” Brown says.

The council estimates that 26,000 new homes will be needed in and around the city by 2040, but it fears any building plans could be delayed by capacity constraints. In the nearby market town of Bicester, this has already happened.

“The latest expansion in Bicester was supposed to see an additional 7,000 homes and a large commercial zone built, but they’ve been put on pause because grid reinforcements are needed to get them further,” says Brown, who is also a vice-chair of the District Councils’ Network, a cross-party group of 169 district and unitary councils in England. “I don’t think Oxfordshire is unique at all. I know it is becoming quite a big issue across the country.”

This inability to build enough homes is not a new problem. For the past decade, sluggish building rates have meant the government’s target of 300,000 homes a year has been repeatedly missed, while the housing crisis has worsened.

Funding and planning issues are routinely blamed for the country’s supply issues; a lack of electricity supply has rarely been given as a reason why homes are not built – until recently.

Full article here.
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Image: Electricity transmission [credit: green lantern electric]