Wind Power More Attractive Economically Than Gas, Says WWF

Wind power will be much more beneficial to the UK economy than a major switch to gas, the World Wildlife Fund claims.

Campaigning group Greenpeace joined in the animal protection group's comments against fossil fuels.

The national economy would be £20 billion (€24.5 bn) larger by 2030 if the nation uses offshore wind to meet power demand instead of relying on gas, the two organisations conclude.

The reference to gas included unexploited fuel in shale formations, Bloomberg reported.

Targets for carbon emission reductions, should Britain rely on gas over wind, will also be missed, according to a report from Cambridge Econometrics commissioned by the environmental groups.

The study said gas was currently relatively cheap, but the difference would decrease as investment and infrastructure appeared for wind facilities.

“With the Energy Bill now before Parliament, it’s high time for the government, and especially the Chancellor, to open their eyes to the benefits that wind and other renewables will deliver for both the economy and the environment, and seize this opportunity before it goes elsewhere,” WWF-UK chief executive officer David Nussbaum said in a statement about the report.

British Chancellor George Osborne has said gas will be the “largest single source of electricity in the coming years”.

The Department of Energy and Climate Change is charged with devising the national gas strategy, expected to be given a large boost in Wednesday's Autumn Statement by the Chancellor, delivered in the House of Commons.