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Draft National Policy Statement for Fossil Fuel Electricity Generating Infrastructure (EN-2)

My Lords, I am grateful and the noble Lord is providing invaluable advice to my department on those matters. He can probably answer the question on cost-effectiveness very much better than I can. I turn to the very interesting point raised by the noble Lord, Lord Crickhowell, on safety in terms of the infrastructure and ship movements. As far as I am concerned, the energy infrastructure in itself is subject to COMAH and enforced by the HSE and the Environment Agency. He referred to SIGTTO; I should like to take his points away and give him a considered response, because this is rather a new issue for me as a Minister here. I want also to make some general points. As far as energy and safety of shipping navigation is concerned, of course safety is paramount. The NPS makes it clear that the HSE regime that governs the sites for these turbines—the noble Lord said that he has no issue with the HSE’s discharge of its own duties—emphasises the safety of navigation for shipping. I refer him to the statement in the appraisal of sustainability document which accompanies these statements about the statutory arrangements for the safety of navigation. Page 13 of the document, which I will be happy to send to the noble Lord, makes it clear that, ""the safety of shipping and navigation is an important issue for all shipping, especially LNG tanker shipments. The existing legal framework and its enforcement will ensure that LNG tanker shipments are safely regulated"." The Safety of Life at Sea convention, SOLAS, governs the requirement for safe navigation between ports. Chapters 4 and 5 cover the carriage requirements for navigation and communication equipment. Those requirements vary according to the size and class of ship, and LNG ships will face the strictest obligations of any cargo flags. They are variously inspected, surveyed and certified by the maritime flag administration or a recognised organisation acting on its behalf. At sea, LNG tankers have to obey all normal traffic reporting, and routine rules and procedures as well as collision regulations. There are special rules regarding port operations for LNG vessels with detailed procedures set out port by port. On the issue of regassification at sea, the Energy Act 2008 supports the through-the-night relicensing scheme for offshore gas storage and LNG unloading. There are projects coming through, but we think that there is also scope for onshore LNG registration and storage terminals. The safety case is always considered as part of the development application.