The government plans to use British seabed owned by the Crown Estate to develop wind farms, aiming to power 20 million homes. This marks the first major initiative by Great British Energy, the new government company dedicated to increasing renewable energy, which will receive £8.3bn in state funding over the next five years.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband stated that the initiative would “lead to lower bills” for households. However, the Conservatives criticized GB Energy as a “gimmick” that would ultimately cost families more.

The Crown Estate, which manages a vast portfolio of property and land and helps fund the Royal Family, will lease land for wind farm development. The Crown Estate owns the majority of the seabed extending up to 12 nautical miles from the mainland.

Miliband noted that investments in wind farms and other renewables like solar energy would eventually reduce bills, though not immediately. He told BBC Breakfast that renewable energy projects will impact bills as they come online, with the government aiming to cut the typical 10 to 15 years needed to build offshore wind farms by half.

Labour hopes that GB Energy, a key manifesto pledge, will reduce the UK’s reliance on fossil fuels, whose prices surged following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, exacerbating the cost-of-living crisis. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the plans would “turbocharge our country toward energy security” and lower energy bills.

Conservatives, however, argued that GB Energy would end up costing families rather than cutting bills. Shadow Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho criticized the initiative, claiming it funnels taxpayers’ money into reducing risks for multi-million-pound energy companies.

The government is providing £8.3bn in funding for GB Energy, hoping to attract £60bn in private investment. The goal is to lease wind farm projects capable of generating between 20GW and 30GW of offshore power by 2030. The Crown Estate already had this target, but the government confirmed its support on Thursday.

Government officials believe the Crown Estate’s involvement will accelerate the development of fixed and floating offshore wind farms, though critics argue that connecting to the power grid is the real bottleneck. Additionally, the £8bn funding over the length of the parliament is far less than the £28bn annually the Labour Party initially wanted to spend on a green revolution, which aimed to decarbonize electricity generation by 2030—a target many energy industry experts consider unrealistic.

The agreement currently covers projects around England and Wales, but Labour is also in discussions with the Scottish government and Crown Estate Scotland to support local projects. Last year, the Northern Ireland Executive and the Crown Estate agreed on a statement of intent to establish leasing for offshore wind farms. Northern Ireland currently has no offshore wind farms after several projects were abandoned at the planning stage.

GB Energy will play a central role in the government’s mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower, taking stakes in energy projects to expedite their development. This includes boosting technologies like carbon capture and storage, hydrogen, wave, and tidal energy. Eventually, GB Energy may take a controlling interest in some renewable generation projects.

The government aims for GB Energy to accelerate renewable energy projects by aiding their development and investing in them alongside private investors. It also plans for GB Energy to collaborate with local energy projects and the nuclear industry.

In addition to introducing new legislation to create GB Energy, the government will relax regulations on the Crown Estate to allow for increased investment and borrowing. Since coming to power in the recent election, the government has made several decisions regarding renewable energy generation, including approving three large onshore solar farm projects despite local opposition.