Copyright 2003 Newspaper Publishing PLC
The Independent (London)

November 29, 2003, Saturday

SECTION: BUSINESS; Pg. 29

LENGTH: 452 words

HEADLINE: BILL GIVES MINISTERS POWER TO BAIL OUT ENERGY DISTRIBUTORS

BYLINE: MICHAEL HARRISON BUSINESS EDITOR The development of onshore wind
farms could be accelerated by the Energy Bill's proposals to streamline
public inquiries into new power stations Andrew Fox

BODY:
MINISTERS ARE to be granted powers to bail out bankrupt electricity and gas
companies to prevent the shutdown of their networks.

The Energy Bill, published yesterday, will create a "special administration
regime" enabling the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, Patricia
Hewitt, to provide grants, loans and loan guarantees to companies which are
in danger of going bust.

The move follows the pounds 3bn rescue of the nuclear generator British
Energy, which was only saved from insolvency by an emergency line of credit
from the Government and a subsequent agreement that its nuclear liabilities
would be shouldered by the taxpayer.

DTI officials said, however, that the new special administration
arrangements would relate only to gas and electricity distribution companies
- the owners of the local wire and pipe networks - and not to generating or
supply companies.

They also stressed that the measure was a precautionary one and that
insolvency of one of these "protected energy companies" was very unlikely.
Were it to happen, however, and a network were to close, it would have "very
serious consequences".

A similar arrangement is already in place for water companies. The
Government did consult on extending it to energy as part of the Utilities
Act passed in 2000 but ran out of parliamentary time. A subsequent attempt
by the Labour peer Lord Borrie to introduce a special administration
arrangement as part of last year's Enterprise Act failed after the
Government refused to support it.

The bill will also speed up public inquiries into the building of new power
stations, perhaps cutting the time it takes to get planning approval by as
much as a third.

Renewable energy companies have complained that the development of onshore
wind farms - a key element in helping the Government meet its Kyoto targets
- is being hampered by the time it takes to get planning permission.

The changes to the law will streamline the process by allowing lead inquiry
inspectors to sit with other inspectors so that different planning
considerations can be considered at the same time.

Officials said the new public inquiry process would apply to onshore wind
farms of more than 50 megawatts.

DTI officials denied that the changes to the planning regime were a means of
bulldozing through more wind farms in the face of local opposition. Various
battles are being fought around the country to prevent wind farms being
built close to Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

One such battle concerns plans by Ecotricity to erect two giant wind
turbines at Blackmore Vale on the Dorset-Somerset border. Opponents claim
the turbines will be visible for a 20-mile radius.

LOAD-DATE: November 29, 2003