The UK government has handed a major boost to the country's renewable energy industry by announcing plans for £1 billion of funding to help develop onshore
wind farms.
UK-based lenders Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland and BNP Paribas Fortis will work with the European Investment Bank (EIB) to provide the money over the next three years.
The fund, which is part of the £4 billion EIB loan outlined in the Budget to support UK energy projects, is designed to speed up construction of onshore wind projects that have been hit by the recession.
Energy and climate change secretary Ed Miliband said: "The EIB funds will help the building start on consented wind farms that could provide 1GW of electricity, enough to power more than half a million homes."
Ministers will also make £10 million in government grants available for the development of offshore wind technology in a bid to help boost
renewable energy resources.
The announcement comes after the Confederation of British Industry and McKinsey & Company claimed the government must achieve a balanced mix of coal, gas, solar, wind and other technologies if it is to meet its climate change targets.
