Posted on: 25/06/2024
This week's energy news headlines: The UK is increasingly attractive to global renewables investors; A report warns momentum is stalling on the energy transition; Industry leaders have welcomed a pledge to relax restrictions on onshore wind. Our industry round-up includes the latest updates from Government departments and energy regulators.
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has issued the latest findings of the Public Attitudes Tracker for Spring 2024 covering Net Zero and climate change, different types of energy infrastructure, energy use in the home and energy bills.
Ofgem has set out its decision on Capacity Market Rule change proposals CP368, CP369 and CP373
Ofgem has approved a modification to the Connection and Use of System Code (CMP428) around defining liabilities for generators connected via onshore transmission.
Scottish Renewables has published an update to its Scotland onshore wind pipeline analysis 2024-2030.
National Grid ESO has set out the initial design for the future of its Demand Flexibility Service.
A significant increase in funding for projects in the latest CfD round has helped the UK climb higher in the league table of most attractive countries for renewables investors.
The latest EY Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Index (RECAI) sees the UK move up from seventh place to sixth thanks to what was described as a “significant hike” in the sixth CfD round budget.
The UK is also named as the third most attractive market for battery energy storage investment. The RECAI report cited “sophisticated energy market design and a new energy bill that classifies BESS as a generation asset”.
The top spots in the overall rankings are retained by the US (1), China (2) and Germany (3).
The transition to a more secure and sustainable energy system is making progress but has lost momentum in the face of increasing uncertainty, according to a new report.
The World Economic Forum report found that 107 of the 120 countries benchmarked in the report demonstrated progress on their energy transition journeys in the past decade, but the overall pace of the transition has slowed.
The UK has fallen from 8th to 13th in the rankings, based on factors including energy consumption and CO2 intensity of energy supply.
Europe continues to lead the rankings, accounting for all of the top 10 countries for 2024. Sweden (1) and Denmark (2) top the rankings, having both placed in the top three countries each year for the past decade. They are followed by Finland (3), Switzerland (4) and France (5).
The report said the countries benefit from high political commitment, strong investments in research and development, expanded clean energy adoption – accelerated by the regional geopolitical situation, energy-efficiency policies and carbon pricing.
Industry leaders have welcomed a pledge that an incoming Labour government would lift the de facto onshore ban in England.
Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change and Net Zero Ed Miliband made the announcement at an industry conference.
RenewableUK’s Head of Policy James Robottom said lifting the ban on onshore wind in England, which has been in place for nine years, would strengthen energy security and provide more clean electricity for consumers.
"We're urging all politicians to set ambitious UK-wide targets for onshore wind by 2030. Our research shows that delivering 30GW of onshore wind by the end of the decade, double what we have today, would boost the economy by £45 billion and create 27,000 jobs”.
Greater political leadership would inspire small businesses to invest in green growth and help the UK get to net zero.
The Small Business Britain campaign has urged a future government to increase sustainability support for SMEs and provide better access to funding.
The Green Growth research report found four in five (80%) business owners want to reduce their emissions, but less than 2% said they had the sustainability resources at their disposal to do so, and two thirds wanted more support.
“Leadership from government and big business is urgently needed to solve the major challenges that small businesses, and the wider world, are going to face as a result of climate change,” said Small Business Britain founder Michelle Ovens CBE.
“There is a clear opportunity for the next government to take the lead in driving a positive shift towards greener growth – through greater clarity, connection, and engagement with small businesses.
Ever increasing global energy demand means the share coming from fossil fuels has remained virtually unchanged despite a record renewables contribution.
The latest annual review of world energy by the Energy Institute, KPMG and Kearney found that global fossil fuel consumption reached a record high in 2023.
As a share of the overall mix fossil fuels were at 81.5%, marginally down from 82% the previous year.
Renewable generation, excluding hydro, was up 13% to a record high of 4,748 TWh Energy Institute chief executive Nick Wayth said: “The progress of the transition is slow, but the big picture masks diverse energy stories playing out across different geographies. In advanced economies we observe signs of demand for fossil fuels peaking, contrasting with economies in the Global South for whom economic development and improvements in quality of life continue to drive fossil growth.”
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