Tony Blair's oil lobbying is a misleading rehash of fossil fuel industry spin

"The Tony Blair Institute for Global Change (TBI) received money from the Saudi government, has advised the United Arab Emirates petrostate, and counts as a main donor Larry Ellison, the founder of Oracle, friend of Trump and advocate of AI. The latest TBI report calls for an expansion of oil and gas production in the North Sea, despite the additional greenhouse gas emissions this would generate,"

"The report claims renewable energy is too expensive. Yet this overlooks the fact that it is significantly cheaper than building the gas-fired power stations that would be needed instead. New onshore wind has been agreed at a price of 72/MWh and new solar at 65MWh both less than half the 147/MWh cost of building and operating new gas power stations. New offshore wind, at 91/MWh, is about 40% cheaper than new gas."

"According to the analyst firm Aurora Energy Research, offshore wind priced below 94/MWh lowers consumer bills. By contrast, nuclear power on which the TBI is keen is likely to cost more than 133/MWh and would take many more years to build. The report also cavils at the cost of electricity grid upgrades needed to support renewable energy, without acknowledging that grid improvements will be required in any scenario."

Tony Blair Institute for Global Change received Saudi government funding, has advised the United Arab Emirates petrostate, and lists Larry Ellison as a main donor. TBI calls for expanding oil and gas production in the North Sea and for abandoning the UK's target to largely decarbonise electricity by 2030, arguing that higher energy supply is needed to power AI datacentres. TBI claims renewable energy is too expensive and criticises grid upgrade costs. Independent analyses show new onshore wind and solar are far cheaper than new gas, offshore wind lowers bills below 94/MWh, and nuclear is costlier and slower to build.

Read at www.theguardian.com