Renewable energy to account for 44% of power generation by 2030
Posted: Thursday, July 25th, 2024
Cornwall Insight’s latest power generation forecast shows that solar, onshore and offshore wind are scheduled to account for just 44% of Great Britain’s electricity generation in the next six years, Electrical Times reported. This is a significant shortfall from the 67% needed for a fully decarbonised electricity system, as projected by modelling experts. This will make the new government’s ambitious pledge to deliver a zero-carbon power system by 2030 a substantial challenge. Their plans to double onshore wind, triple solar power, and quadruple offshore wind capacity would require extensive increases beyond current 2030 projections: adding 35GW to onshore wind (17GW above projected levels), 50GW to offshore wind (27GW above projections), and 55GW to solar (10GW above projections). Their plans will face substantial challenges, particularly with funding, supply chain issues, grid connections, and port capacity. Cornwall Insight’s modelling predicts that an additional £48bn will be needed in addition to the £18bn the current infrastructure buildout is already predicted to cost to meet the government’s ambition. Therefore, attracting that investment into the country will be critical to delivery. Increased funding for schemes such as Contract for Difference (CfD) might attract more business by providing greater returns, but significant global bottlenecks remain. The path to a fully decarbonised power system would also demand a dramatic increase in storage deployment, especially for longer-duration storage and hydrogen. While a pledge to increase capacity has been made, no firm commitments have been made.
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