Solar Energy UK believes the modest target set by the government will be exceeded
Key Takeaways
- UK’s new Clean Power 2030 Action Plan sets a pathway for the country’s clean energy transition
- It includes offshore wind’s leading role with up to 50 GW cumulative capacity target, followed by solar PV
- Solar Energy UK expects the country to easily exceed the solar PV capacity target
The United Kingdom (UK) has set itself a target of installing a cumulative of 45 GW to 47 GW of solar PV capacity by 2030 under the country’s Clean Power 2030 Action Plan, while adding that this technology has the ‘scope to exceed the 47 GW upper limit’. Local solar association Solar Energy UK agrees calling 45 GW a modest target that will surely be exceeded.
As of Q2 2024, the country’s cumulative installed solar PV capacity was 16.6 GW. It has another 23.8 GW committed or under construction, according to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) report.
Notably, the Labour Party’s predecessor Conservative Party had planned to expand the country’s solar capacity by 5-fold from 14 GW, as announced in 2022. The Labour Party promised to triple solar power, double onshore wind and quadruple offshore wind by 2030 (see Britain’s Green-Leaning Labour Party Back In Power).
The new plan envisions offshore wind becoming the backbone of the country’s future electricity system with a target to achieve 43 GW to 50 GW cumulative capacity by the end of this decade. Onshore wind gets 27 GW to 29 GW.
Flexible capacity is also part of the plans as it aims to install 23 GW to 27 GW battery storage, 4 GW to 6 GW of long-duration energy storage, and development of flexibility technologies including gas carbon capture utilization & storage, hydrogen, and substantial opportunity for consumer-led flexibility. Around 35 GW of natural gas in reserve capacity will ensure supply security.
Rooftop solar is another area the administration plans to work on as it sees potential to boost solar capacity further with solar panels on warehouses, industrial spaces, outdoor carparks, etc. For the construction of solar canopies on outdoor carparks, it will launch a call for evidence in 2025.
Solar is already part of the government’s Warm Homes Local Grant and Warm Homes Social Housing Fund. The administration plans to further integrate the technology in the future iteration of the Warm Homes Plan, it said.
Based on the recommendations of the National Electricity System Operator (NESO), this capacity increase will be complemented by the development of 80 new transmission projects.
The government also wants to spruce up its Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme to improve transparency and predictability. The clean energy supply chain will also be encouraged with the introduction of a Clean Industry Bonus to support manufacturing in coastal and energy communities.
“The National Wealth Fund will focus at least £5.8 billion of its capital on green hydrogen, carbon capture, ports, gigafactories, and green steel, while Great British Energy will support the growth of clean power supply chains around the UK,” reads the plan.
The government expects an estimated £40 billion on average/year investment in achieving these targets between 2025 and 2030.
UK’s Energy Secretary Ed Miliband called the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan the most ambitious reform to the country’s energy system in generations with a focus on homegrown energy. “The clean power sprint is the national security, economic security, and social justice fight of our time – and this plan gives us the tools we need to win this fight for the British people,” he stated.
RenewableUK’s Chief Executive Dan McGrail welcomed the policy announcement as he believes this will speed up the pace of approving new wind and solar farms, and also increase the number of projects vying for the government’s CfD auctions.
“Crucially, the Action Plan also recognises that not all the core decisions about the future of the energy sector have been made. We’re particularly keen to see new measures in the upcoming Industrial Strategy to support investment in clean energy supply chains, as well as a final decision on market reform to provide certainty and confidence,” added McGrail.
Source from Taiyang News
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