Energy

---

Energy is fundamental to a modern society.  It drives electrons through microchips.  Increasingly it powers our data centres and AI. It keeps cars, vans, lorries and buses running.  It powers every ship.  It is heating and cooling our buildings.   Without energy no work can be done, nothing can be moved, nothing can be heated or cooled.

Hampshire uses huge amounts of energy. Every year our people and businesses consume some 30,000 million units (KWh) of energy. Almost all that has been created outside our area. 

Almost all the energy we use is made by burning fossil fuels. 80% of all the greenhouse gas emissions in the county are energy related. Burning fossil fuels emits 5.6 million tonnes of greenhouse gases in Hampshire and Solent.

It costs us over £3.2 billion a year – a huge drain on our local economy.

The change we need

We need energy. So we need to transform our energy systems. 

This is a huge economic opportunity. A way of creating thousands of well paid jobs. 

First, we must become much more energy efficient – using less to do more: 

1. Insulate and our buildings, build only carbon neutral housing.
2. Electrify heating. Heat pumps use a third to a quarter of the energy a gas boiler does. Buildings that are more energy efficient are more comfortable and healthy to live in.
3. Drive less, move to bikes and public transport. Electrify our transport system. Electric buses, ambulances, lorries and cars are 3 times more energy efficient than petrol or diesel vehicles.

Second, we must convert from fossil fuels to renewable and low carbon energy sources – wind, solar, biomass, tidal and hydro, maybe even nuclear (hopefully fusion). 

This means moving to electricity. To use electricity instead of petrol, gas and oil for heat and transport will take three or four times as much electricity. 

So we need to invest much more in local renewable electricity generation. And we need a grid that can take electricity from where it is generated to where it is used.

The benefits are huge:

• Renewable electricity is cheap to produce, reducing household bills and business costs. Cheaper energy will boost the Hampshire economy
• Adapting our infrastructure to change makes it safer, more reliable and robust. 
• Local renewable energy will remove our reliance on foreign controlled and owned energy sources.
• Clean electricity will cut our greenhouse emissions by 80%
• A cleaner environment and abundant cheap electricity will make our region attractive to new investment from both the UK and wider, and generate well paid highly skilled local jobs. 

We call on the Mayor to:

1. Commit to the absolute need to transform our energy system from one based on fossil fuels to one based on renewable electricity 
2. Develop a local area energy plan which identifies the future demand for electricity and a strategy for generating that from renewables locally.
3. In the spatial planning strategy, identify enough land to meet the renewable electricity needs of Hampshire and Solent
4. Set an economic strategy that reflects the vital importance of providing enough electricity for local industry and business and the economic opportunities created by a thriving low carbon economy
5. Work with other Mayors to press the Government for speedy effective investment to ensure that the national grid has the capacity to deliver what’s needed.
6. Work with other Mayors to press the Government for support for home-owners and social housing to switch from oil and gas to electric heating.
7. Secure agreement among unitary authorities to include in their next Local Plan:

• Encouragement for investment in renewable generation, and sites which should include solar farms, onshore wind turbines and tidal power
• Advice on agrivoltaic approaches that allow land and light to be used.
• Requirements for all new buildings to deliver net zero emissions
• Develop a plan to deliver recharging facilities for all Hampshire & Solent transport needs