Report reveals pathways for UK’s clean energy future

According to a new report from Energy Systems Catapult, rapid deployment of low-carbon, low regret technologies like offshore wind, solar power and electric vehicles, coupled with accelerated innovation in novel clean tech, could allow the UK to meet its goal of net zero emissions by 2050.

Analysis from the Innovating to Net Zero 2024 report demonstrates that the cost of meeting Net Zero is still within 1% of GDP by 2050. This includes £16bn per year in capital investment from the public and private sectors, part of £600bn in total system costs over the next 25 years.

The report explored over 3,600 potential routes to decarbonising the UK’s energy system and found that increasing the pace of deploying mature technologies is key. This means significantly ramping up the use of renewable power sources like offshore wind as well as electrifying things like home heating and transportation.

Electrification of heating in most buildings was identified as the most cost-effective pathway to Net Zero. Analysts say it is unlikely that hydrogen will play any significant role in heating buildings in the future. If it is used at all, it will likely be limited to local areas close to industrial clusters supplying energy centres connected to large heat networks, alongside its very significant role in industry, power and transport.

In addition to deploying existing clean technologies, the report says there must be an accelerated effort to develop innovative new ones. These include small modular nuclear reactors, long duration energy storage, and bioenergy with carbon capture and storage or ‘BECCS’.

Developing these emerging technologies could help the UK capture valuable parts of the global low-carbon supply chain and provide more options to meet the net zero target.

However, the report warns that simply deploying new technologies alone is not enough – integrating them into a reliable clean energy system will be a huge challenge as well. Achieving this in a way that maintains energy security and public support will require a whole systems approach.

Guy Newey, chief executive officer at Energy Systems Catapult, says:

“2050 is just 308 months away and while the path to Net Zero has narrowed, innovations in mature and novel clean tech gives us cause for optimism. Our modelling has demonstrated that we have credible pathways to Net Zero available to us. But we need to accelerate the pace and scale of deployment to levels not yet seen. There has never been a more exciting time to be a clean tech innovator, it will take unparalleled levels of innovation, combined with targeted investment to make Net Zero a reality.

“To make the transition to a zero-carbon future, we need to make the transition as easy for consumers as possible – and we are seeing huge innovations in consumer-facing products and services that will make low carbon options a desirable choice for households and businesses. If we fail to take consumers along the journey with us, Net Zero will not happen.”

Alex Buckman, innovative solutions architect – flexibility at Energy Systems Catapult, adds:

“Whilst there are plenty of things we don’t know about the future, our analysis has shown that there is much more that we can be certain about. If we continue to innovate and strive for a well-planned and integrated transition to a Net Zero energy system, it can be affordable and could provide huge opportunities for UK companies, benefitting UK citizens and beyond.”