Ofgem starts investigation into output of wind farms
Estimated energy output from wind farms should be subject to independent checking, according to MPs, after claims that operators overestimate production to reap financial benefits.
Wind farm operators are often paid to switch off their turbines when generation outstrips demand to prevent the electricity grid from being overloaded. These curtailment payments are based on the amount of energy that a wind farm company says it will produce.
However, a Bloomberg analysis of 30 million records found that some operators overestimate their output, which boosts the amount of money they receive from National Grid.
Ofgem, the energy watchdog, said it had opened an investigation into the “alleged behaviour” and that “if it finds evidence of egregious action or market abuse, enforcement action will follow”.
Angus MacNeil, chairman of the Commons energy security and net zero committee, said: “There should be algorithms and AI that can quickly predict this more accurately, instead of just taking what those wind farms themselves say they can produce. There is no checking mechanism and there should be a checking mechanism.”
Of the 121 wind farms analysed by Bloomberg, 40 overstated their output by 10 per cent or more on average and 27 by at least 20 per cent. Electricite de France SA’s Fallago Rig wind farm near the Scottish border said it would produce 27.1 per cent more power than it did between 2018 and June last year. EDF Renewables UK said: “We take compliance very seriously and are looking into this further.”
Barnaby Wharton, director of future electricity systems at RenewableUK, the trade association, argued that the outdated grid was the root cause of the problem. “Wind generators’ licences include strict conditions which ensure they can’t profit unfairly if they are told to reduce the amount of power they are generating due to grid constraints,” he said. “These constraints reflect a chronic lack of investment in the grid to unlock the huge quantities of electricity which we’re now generating from renewables.”
National Grid has said that it will allocate £19 million to improve grid infrastructure in 2025-26.
