Offshore Energies UK (OEUK) has revealed a strategy to guide the UK toward achieving net zero power by 2030.
The plan, outlined in a report from AFRY Management Consulting, addresses challenges and goals ahead.
By 2030, the UK will need to add over 90 gigawatts of new generation capacity, sufficient to power more than 90 million homes.
Of this, 80 gigawatts must be sourced from renewables, involving a tripling of offshore wind capacity and a doubling of onshore wind and solar power capacity annually until 2030.
An additional 15 gigawatts of low carbon ‘dispatchable’ capacity is required to provide reliable electricity, utilising technologies such as gas-fired power with carbon capture and hydrogen generation during periods of low renewable output.
The interconnector power transmission capacity needs to be expanded from the current ten gigawatts to 21 gigawatts by 2030 to facilitate energy trade with continental European markets and Ireland.
According to the report, addressing planning challenges involves coordinated efforts to reduce project lead times, expand existing work pipelines and increase approval capacities.
Specific measures include accelerating 6GW of grid connection agreements for offshore wind and preparing for significant government support for most of the required new power generation capacity.
Analysts note that to support new dispatchable low carbon technologies, government-backed revenue support schemes must be finalised by 2027, alongside a doubling of government-awarded contracts annually for offshore wind, onshore wind and solar power.
OEUK Chief Executive David Whitehouse said: “It will require a herculean effort by government, regulators and industry working together to deliver change to UK infrastructure on a scale unseen since the industrial revolution.
“We will need everything everywhere all at once. Every year between now and 2030 we will have to install as many or more new offshore wind farms as we have ever achieved.
“Zero carbon power generation must come from reliable supplies that can be easily called upon when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine. In our 2030 net zero power grid there will remain an important role for gas-fired power offset with carbon capture.”
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