WIND FARMS ACCUSED OF OVERCHARGING BY £100 MILLION

Wind farm owners are being investigated by the energy watchdog for alleged market manipulation after they were accused of overcharging consumers by over £100m. 

 Ofgem is to examine claims that renewable energy companies artificially inflated compensation payments for switching off turbines on windy days when the grid did not need extra capacity.

 It has been handed a dossier gathered by analysts at the Renewable Energy Foundation (REF), which suggests that wind farm companies could be boosting the price of "virtual energy" they never actually generated. An Ofgem spokesman confirmed that the claims had been received and an investigation has begun into whether any rules were broken. John Constable, director of REF, a charity that has frequently highlighted excessive payments to wind farms, said: "Our evidence suggests that multiple wind farm operators have been charging over the odds to reduce their output on windy days.