CPRW Responds To Renewableuk Cymru’s “Bold New Vision”: “Disappointing! Could Do Better”

Press Release
15^th May 2025

CPRW Responds To Renewableuk Cymru’s “Bold New Vision”: “Disappointing! Could Do Better”

CPRW is Wales’ leading countryside charity, working to protect and enhance the rural landscape and ensure the long-term wellbeing of communities, biodiversity, and the Welsh countryside. In response to RenewableUK Cymru’s latest report, CPRW raises serious concerns about the assumptions and omissions in their vision for Wales’ renewable energy future.

RenewableUK Cymru released their latest “bold new vision” in the Senedd on May 13 in which they outline the scale of renewable energy generation they believe is possible in Wales. The numbers make impressive reading but leave many questions unanswered:

• 9GW of installed renewable capacity
• £46.9 billion in private investment, with over £10 billion flowing to Welsh businesses
• Nearly 8,000 skilled, high-paid jobs with salaries 26% higher than the Welsh average. In urban and rural communities — in every part of Wales.
• Almost £2 billion in tax revenue to support public services, with onshore wind the highest contributor to local authorities.
• £183 million in direct community benefit funds for local initiatives
• 13 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions saved by 2035

Dr Jonathan F Dean, CPRW Trustee, said: “The figures for onshore wind installed capacity are very revealing, being far higher than the estimates they made only five years ago. Clearly the consenting regime has become far more lenient, probably aided by the recent approvals which overrule the policy to not develop on peat lands.”

“The offshore wind capacities are very disappointing, reaching nothing like the capacity potential estimated by the National Energy System Operator. It is offshore wind that is the real prize for Wales and has the potential to replace all other forms of generation. The estimates made have even included capacity which would not actually be in the Welsh sea!”

“The missing detail for solar is how would this be deployed? As socially acceptable rooftop solar, providing direct benefit to homes, businesses, schools and hospitals or as vast fields of black glass, benefiting mainly landowners and investors.”

Jonty Colchester, CPRW Chairman, added: ““It is recognised that offshore wind is essential for Wales to meet its 2050 target. Offshore wind also offers the potential for genuine long-term employment in Wales. We are never going to meet our target onshore. So why are we destroying the countryside to pretend that we are? It has to be done logically, and the short-term approach taken at the moment is not logical.”

While CPRW welcomes ambitious targets for renewable energy and the promise of economic benefit for Wales, we call for greater transparency, realism, and sensitivity in how these ambitions are achieved. A truly sustainable energy future must balance environmental protection, landscape integrity, and social equity. We urge policymakers to ensure that future developments are genuinely beneficial for Welsh communities and landscapes — not just numbers on a page.

ENDS