Why don't we all just step back for a second and consider a "zero carbon future". Leaving aside any doubts about it, if you have any, this diagram , second page, is a bit of a jaw-dropper, isn't it????
http://www.decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/11/stats/publications/flow-chart/2276-energy-flow-chart-2010.pdf
(Thirty years ago, I used to study the Digest of UK Energy statistics quite a bit. Don't ask why.)
Anyway, here is last year's version. On the left is the raw, primary energy that is imported into the system. On the right is where it is finally consumed. Various losses in the process point out in other directions.
Suppose you want to wean the transport sector off petroleum and into electric vehicles. That means increasing electricity generation by a fair bit, judging by the width of the petroleum input, even if electric vehicles become more efficient than current fossil fuelled ones.
Now suppose you want to supply the buildings of the UK with "zero carbon" energy. That means cutting off all the electricity generated by fossil fuels that is currently used in buildings, and finding a "zero carbon" alternative. It also means shutting off the gas supply that heats an awful lot of us, judging by the width of the band on the right of the chart, and replacing it with " zero carbon" electricity.
Yes, increased energy efficiency in all sectors would help a lot, but the fact still remains that a "zero carbon" future will require a simply massive increase in electricity production.
Now look at the left hand side of the chart and see what "renewables" are currently providing. Mr Huhne's massive expansion of wind power won't even dent the problem .
IMHO.
