UK's clean energy future: challenges and opportunities

Great Britain Hits Record 87 Hours of 100% Clean Electricity in 2025 In 2025, #Great_Britain has been fully powered by #clean_electricity for a record 87 hours so far, up sharply from 2.5 hours in 2021 and 64.5 hours in 2024. This progress reflects growing renewable penetration but still falls far short of the government’s 2030 target for 95% of electricity to come from low-carbon sources and 100% of demand to be covered without fossil fuels. During these periods, wind provided 72% of demand, followed by nuclear (18%), solar (10%), biomass (4%), and hydro (1%). On average, clean sources generated 105% of national demand, enabling exports, while gas still supplied around 13%. The longest continuous stretch of clean-powered demand so far was 15 hours in May 2025. To meet its targets, Britain will need to extend this to a full year by 2030. Upcoming milestones include NESO’s goal to operate the grid without fossil fuels for at least 30 minutes by end-2025, and the results of the seventh auction round for clean-energy contracts (CfDs) later this year. https://lnkd.in/dWRPsYyH #CleanEnergy #EnergyTransition #Sustainability #NetZero #UKEnergy

I recently signed up to Seb van Dort Substack Energy Insider which is full of great insights, some of which are below; This week showed just how much the UK energy system is being reshaped: Storm Amy pushed wholesale prices into negative territory for the first time in two years. Wind power is now routinely cutting electricity prices by up to 25% — a structural change, not a blip. Nuclear is moving from policy to execution, with UK–US partnerships pushing gigawatt-scale projects into development. For energy professionals, the implications are clear: 🔹 Negative pricing is here to stay, asset returns and contracts must adapt. 🔹 Flexibility and storage aren’t “nice-to-haves” anymore, they’re the growth story. 🔹 Nuclear supply chain confidence is rising, but execution risk remains real. And for large users? Demand-shifting is becoming a competitive advantage. If you can consume during negative pricing and avoid the spikes, you protect margin while cutting carbon. 👉 The credible path forward hasn’t changed: reduce demand by cutting waste, then build independence and resilience. Whether labelled Net Zero Carbon or not, it still requires investment, but the right investment pays back in lower bills, stability, and security. Shout-out to Energy Insider for another sharp, data-rich brief that gets beyond the noise and into what really matters for strategy. #ThinkBeyondNetZero #EnergyEfficiency #EnergyIndependence #EnergySecurity #Decarbonisation #Flexibility #Storage

Ontario’s decision to commit $285 million to TC Energy’s proposed pumped-storage project in Meaford raises big questions about our province’s energy priorities. An internal IESO memo warned the project would be too expensive, too slow to build, and insufficient for near-term energy needs. Yet the government moved ahead anyway — echoing the same risky approach driving new nuclear megaprojects. We should be investing in renewables, battery storage, and grid upgrades that deliver results this decade — not tying up public funds in projects that won’t. Full story from The Narwhal: shorturl.at/Hc6zB #onpoli #EnergyPolicy #RenewableEnergy #Accountability #climatenews

𝗚𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝟴𝟳 𝗛𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝟭𝟬𝟬% 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗣𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 Great Britain has achieved a new milestone in its clean energy transition, with electricity demand being met entirely by clean sources for a record 87 hours so far in 2025, according to Carbon Brief analysis. This marks a sharp increase from 2.5 hours in 2021 and 64.5 hours across all of 2024, reflecting steady progress towards the government’s 2030 target for 95% of electricity generation to come from low-carbon sources and for 100% of national demand to be met without fossil fuels. During these 100% clean power periods, the energy mix was dominated by: • Wind: 72% • Nuclear: 18% • Solar: 10% • Biomass and Hydro: 5% combined At times, low-carbon sources generated 105% of national demand, enabling the export of surplus electricity to neighbouring countries. The longest continuous period of clean power this year lasted 15 hours, from midnight on 25 May to 3pm on 26 May, offering a glimpse of the progress needed to achieve a fully clean grid year-round by 2030. As Britain advances towards its clean power goals, the demand for skilled professionals across energy, sustainability, environment, and health and safety continues to rise. Allen & York connect exceptional talent with organisations driving the transition to a net zero future. Looking to hire in the green space? Contact us at hello@allenyork.com Source: https://lnkd.in/eUNuDWGa

GB electricity outlook is more unpredictable than ever The GB electricity outlook over the next twenty years is more uncertain than anytime in recent decades, reflecting unclear policy direction, UK’s tough fiscal position, AI developments and geopolitics. I’ve been looking at this topic for more than four decades when I did my Phd on the Political Economy of Low Energy Futures. You can see my reflections on this work earlier this year – https://lnkd.in/eMiXFFpN (2024/25) Just a few weeks ago I presented a talk on the current GB electricity outlook at the Sussex Energy Group (same link 2025/26). How things change. Here I pick on the key uncertainties. There has been a breakdown in bipartisan support for an accelerated drive to decarbonization, with the main opposition parties adamantly opposing, in an almost Trumpian manner. Given current poll ratings, this makes the FES Falling Behind Scenario as credible as the three decarbonization cases, while up until 18 months ago it was an outlier. There’s a good presentation from Donal Brown on the new politics of energy at the same link to my talk above. Also see Matthew Lockwood’s post here three weeks ago. We are bracing for a deflationary budget and the consensus view is that the UK’s public finances are severely strained. This means the Government will be hard pushed to meet its promised funding support on low carbon technologies. We can expect cutbacks in ambition – most likely on CCS and hydrogen and possibly on nuclear. Moreover, this comes at a time when private funders are becoming more risk averse, given political uncertainties. On a different dimension we have seen the increasing prevalence of upbeat views from tech optimists, even including Trump’s Energy Secretary, saying that AI – often along with new nuclear will transform the electricity system within the next two decades. There have been announcements from bigtech that they will support new nuclear to power data centres, most notably from Google pledging to back a fleet of fourth generation small modular reactors (SMRs) at Hartlepool. While this is good news for nuclear, the hard engineering realities, the long lead times and the challenge of financing series manufacturing of SMR means this won’t happen at scale until the 2040s. There’s limited scope for AI to accelerate this process. And security requirements will still require a full back-up of generators. And I haven’t even mentioned geopolitics and the potential disruption to supply chains, not least from a conflict in Taiwan. So what’s the bottom line. Prepare for uncertainties. The CP2030 targets are unachievable, though possibly half a decade later given continuing political support. Surprisingly NZ2050 may be achievable – given the longer run up, but only with strong policy support and a return to more benign geopolitical climate.

Bureau Veritas Group has just released the 2025 Global #EnergyTransition Report, covering the breadth of our Group capabilities - #agri, #automotive, #civils, #consumer, #cyber, #commodities, #marine, #energy, and #utilities. The biggest take-away is the two-tier nature of the Energy Transition discussion, as well as the broadening appetite for low-carbon technologies. 𝗧𝘄𝗼-𝘁𝗶𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 & 𝗱𝗲𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 Evidence shows there is significant disparity in renewable energy deployment between advanced (mainly Northern Hemisphere) economies and those in the Southern Hemisphere. While wealthy nations have made major advances, Global South countries (representing two-thirds of the world's population) receive only 15% of clean energy investments. The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that annual clean energy investments in these regions must more than triple to meet #ParisAgreement goals. Barriers include slow permitting, poor policy, limited grid infrastructure, lack of financial incentives, and supply chain resilience issues. #Technology is a clear enabler here, especially #AI. 𝗕𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗠𝗶𝘅 Risk tolerances are evolving, and awareness, understanding and appetite for #nuclear energy is increasing. With such a clear value proposition, nuclear is gaining prominence both on land and on water. Led by Jean-Louis - Global Nuclear Director, and Federico P. - Maritime Nuclear Strategy Lead, our ability to capitalise on Bureau Veritas Groups wider industrial nuclear capabilities and bring this into #maritime makes this a particularly exciting time for us. Download the full report and join the conversation #EnergyTransition #Sustainability #CleanEnergy #GlobalDevelopment

According to the IEA, global #renewable power capacity is set to double by 2030, with #solar leading the way. While China and India surge ahead — positioning their economies for long-term energy security and competitiveness — #Ontario risks falling behind by clinging to costly gas and nuclear projects. Now is the time to align with the global shift and invest in made-in-Ontario clean energy: wind, solar, storage, and efficiency. The world is moving fast — Ontario can’t afford to be left in the dark. 🌞⚡ #onpoli #climatenews #renewableenergy #energyeconomics 🔗 Read more via The Energy Mix: shorturl.at/IaqAW

⚡ The Age of Electricity Has Arrived. According to the IEA’s World Energy Investment Report 2025, the global energy system has officially entered a new era — the Age of Electricity — where capital flowing into clean power, grids, and electrification now surpasses investment in oil, gas, and coal combined. 🌍 Total global energy investment in 2025: USD 3.3 trillion USD 2.2 trillion (≈ two-thirds) directed to clean energy — renewables, nuclear, storage, efficiency, EVs, and electrification. USD 1.1 trillion still flows into fossil fuels — oil, gas, and coal. 🔑 Key takeaways: Solar PV leads all technologies with USD 450 billion in investment, becoming the largest single item of global energy spending. Grid investment lags far behind, reaching only 40% of generation spending — a major bottleneck for energy transition. China accounts for nearly one-third of global clean energy investment, while Africa, with 20% of the world’s population, attracts just 2%. India is on track to achieve 50% non-fossil electricity capacity by 2030, well ahead of schedule. The United States continues to dominate LNG and small modular reactors (SMR), though clean energy spending is plateauing. 💡 Despite clean energy investment doubling in the past five years, the IEA warns: “Global investment still needs to double again to meet COP28 goals — tripling renewables and achieving a 4% annual energy intensity improvement by 2030.” 🌱 The shift from the Age of Oil to the Age of Electricity isn’t just about changing fuels — it’s about transforming economies. Clean energy, digitalization, AI, and energy security are becoming the four pillars shaping the world’s sustainable future. 🔖 full report, please leave your email in comment, I will share !!! #EnergyTransition #CleanEnergy #Sustainability #RenewableEnergy #GreenInvestment #IEAReport #SolarEnergy #Electrification #EnergySecurity #ClimateFinance #NetZero #EnergyInnovation #SustainableFuture #ElectricMobility #AIandEnergy

Australia’s Grid Evolution: Embracing Flexibility with Two-Shifting Coal In a significant shift, AGL’s Bayswater coal units in Australia are now embracing a new operational dance—two-shifting. This innovative approach involves powering down during midday solar peaks and ramping up to meet evening demand. Beyond mere technical adaptability, this strategy signifies a transition from rigid baseload to a more dynamic grid choreography. Why this is significant? - ⚡️ Energy Transition: The adaptation of coal to solar prominence marks a milestone in the evolution of renewables, emphasizing the need for coordinated grid management. - 📉 Market Dynamics: Two-shifting mitigates negative daytime pricing and minimizes curtailment, reshaping economic dispatch patterns and introducing new operational costs. - 🌞 Preserving Renewables: This tactic effectively prevents the curtailment of battery energy storage systems (BESS), rooftop solar installations, and large-scale renewables during periods of midday oversupply, safeguarding clean energy generation and optimizing grid efficiency. - 🧮 Consumer Impact: With a greater renewable energy mix, midday power becomes cleaner and more cost-effective. However, ensuring stability during evening peaks necessitates the integration of battery storage, peaker plants, and potentially pumped hydro facilities. - 🛠️ System Design: The implementation of semi-flexible coal operations serves as a transitional strategy. Long-term grid reliability will rely on versatile, multi-functional assets such as BESS, grid-forming inverters, and intelligent energy management systems. Coal-fired generators will be able to operate in a load-following mode—ramping down during midday when rooftop solar floods the grid and restarting in the evening as demand rises. During these hours of excess supply, coal often bids at negative prices to stay online, despite being less flexible and more carbon-intensive. There’s no technical need to curtail renewable sources or battery storage systems (BESS), which can absorb surplus energy or provide grid services like FCAS. Prioritizing renewables and BESS during these periods supports cleaner dispatch and a more responsive energy market. This is a significant achievement in energy transition journey. #renewableenergy #energytransition #bess #energy #thermalenergy

Electrify everything, and generate electricity at a much lower cost using decentralised renewables, battery systems and scalable gas fired plants. This will create outstanding opportunities for energy efficiency. After running economics on energy investments for 30 years, from oil and gas, coal, nuclear, solar, wind and batteries, there is a clear winner today. The winner is the cost of a decentralised solar (...wind?) and battery system which has come down dramatically over the past decade, and is now receiving the lions share of new energy project investment. If combined with a scalable, well maintained existing or new generation high efficiency gas fired electrical plant, nothing else can compete. Nothing. Electrify everything you can, it will save you money! https://lnkd.in/gSQgBhRd