Solar installation growth saw a six year high in 2021

New figures from Solar Energy UK show that 2021 saw the strongest growth of solar PV capacity since 2015, with 730MW installed around the UK. This represents a 36% increase on 2020, when 538MW were deployed.

There were nearly 67,000 solar PV and solar thermal installations accredited by the Microgeneration Certification Scheme last year, far outperforming the number of heat pumps.

The total installed capacity in the UK is now 14.6GW, up 5.3% on 2020.

Each of the three market segments – residential rooftop, commercial scale and ground mount – have grown steadily outside any subsidy structure. Solar Energy UK believes this reflects homeowner, business and investor confidence.

In 2021, 369MW of onsite solar was installed in the rooftop sector, the highest total in six years, when 869MW of capacity was built. Although the 2015 number is higher, there were significant subsidies available at the time. New growth in the rooftop sector is fully subsidy-free.

High gas prices are believed to have helped stimulate the rooftop market, with commercial energy buyers installing onsite solar to protect themselves against the volatility of buying electricity based on fossil fuels.

In total, there is now more than 5GW of residential, commercial and industrial rooftop solar capacity installed in the UK.

The association expects a number of recent developments to further stimulate the solar market in the coming years, including the Future Homes Standard, to be implemented in 2025, and the removal of unfair tax treatment for businesses installing onsite solar renewable energy generation.

Solar Energy UK chief executive Chris Hewett, said: “2021 was the year the UK’s solar industry came of age. We are now seeing stable, sustained growth across the sector. More and more consumers and businesses are investing in solar because they know it is a proven way to cut their energy bills and carbon emissions. It is also now a cheap way to charge EVs and decarbonise heating.”

“The UK solar industry is ready to meet the challenge of supplying this demand, and we call on the government to match the ambition of the market. Setting a deployment target of 40GW would support the industry to take long-term investment decisions and build the workforce skills that will create thousands of green jobs across the whole country.”

Finlay Colville, head of research at Solar Media Ltd, said: “2021 was potentially the most significant year for the solar industry in the UK, with clear signs that the market can now exist with gigawatt-plus levels of annual deployment going forward. For the first time also, each of the three key segments – residential, commercial rooftop and ground-mount – is seeing stable growth and an increase in the planning of new projects for the future.”

“New investments and stakeholders are entering the UK solar market now in record numbers, many with a long-term strategy to develop large portfolios out to 2030. This is providing a highly dynamic and profitable environment for both domestic and overseas companies active in the market today.”