Truro and Falmouth MP, Sarah Newton, last week chaired the first meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Deep Geothermal Energy in the presence of the Energy Minister, Gregory Barker MP.
The APPG, established by Sarah and Lord Teverson, brought together MPs and all sides of the House of Commons so that they could demonstrate to the Government the potential for geothermal energy across the UK. The Members of Parliament were joined by representatives of engineering firms in this sector who were able to address their questions concerning the Government’s attitude towards deep geothermal energy directly to the Energy Minister.
Deep geothermal energy is a clean, efficient, safe and renewable form of energy which has the potential to generate electricity for 20 percent of UK homes and the total annual heat consumption of the UK. Cornwall is leading the way with the planning permission having been granted for the UK’s first commercial scale deep geothermal plants.
Commenting after the meeting, Sarah said: “I am so pleased to see colleagues coming along to give their support and find out more about this type of renewable energy. Wind, solar, marine and other technologies already have powerful lobbies within Parliament and I feel that deep geothermal needs to have its case made and its voice heard in order for the UK to have a healthy and diverse mix of energy supply. That is why Lord Teverson and I have formed this Group.”
Addressing the meeting itself, the Energy Minister said: “Let’s get to the heart of the matter right from the start – does Government still care about deep geothermal as a clean energy technology? Yes we do.”
“Earlier this year Charles Hendry went to Iceland and secured an historic agreement with the world’s leading user of geothermal energy. And next month I am delighted to be leading a low carbon trade mission to the countries of the Rift Valley which will have deep geothermal as its core theme. I am really excited about this sort of opportunity to expand the UK’s capacity and reach globally.”