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Environment

UK government backs plan to harvest solar power from space

Science minister George Freeman says he won't write a cheque for pioneering plans to beam energy down from a solar array in orbit, but the UK government will offer its support

By Adam Vaughan

17 March 2022

space satellite with solar panels

Artist’s impression of a space satellite with solar panels

ratpack223/Getty Images

The UK government has thrown its backing behind an ambitious plan to beam energy down from solar panels in space.

Science minister George Freeman said he will support an initiative that hopes to construct a solar power array in orbit that could transmit low-carbon energy to the UK and other countries around the clock. That doesn’t mean the government will “write a cheque” for the project, but it is “up for supporting” it, he told an audience at the UK parliament on …

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