Renewable energy brings a new set of challenges

Ed Miliband’s decision to give the go-ahead for the construction of three big solar sites in eastern England is a major boost for renewable energy generation in the UK and has been welcomed by green campaigners. But many other changes are needed in the way electricity is generated and transmitted if Britain is to achieve its net-zero ambitions. Here we sum up some of the issues and headaches that lie ahead.

The need for subsidies

Britain’s commitment to solar power has fluctuated. Initially, government subsidies encouraged homeowners to install solar panels and the UK became a leader in the technology among western nations. “The UK was then one of the most attractive European markets to develop large-scale solar farms and install rooftop solar panels – until 2016 when subsidies were wound down ,” said Hamish Beath of the Centre for Environmental Policy at Imperial College London. “UK solar power plateaued so we are now underperforming compared with other countries.”

China still leads the way

China tops the league of countries using solar energy, followed by the US, Japan and Germany. Britain trails in 10th place with a total solar power capacity of about 16 gigawatts. The new solar farms approved by Miliband, the secretary for energy and net zero, will significantly add to this total: 500 megawatts each for the sites in Sunnica in Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, and Gate Burton in Lincolnshire, and 350MW for the one at Mallard Pass in Rutland and Lincolnshire. “That is a total of 1.35 gigawatts which adds, at a stroke, almost 10% to the nation’s capacity to generate electricity from the sun. It’s very encouraging,” said Beath.

Wind trumps solar

Last year, renewables contributed 41.1% of the UK’s total electricity generation, with wind accounting for 29.4% and solar 4.9%. “However, a lot of that electricity came from offshore wind farms in the north and had to be transmitted south where demand is concentrated,” said Sugandha Srivastav, of Oxford University’s Smith School of Enterprise and Environment. “And that is a problem, for our electricity transmission lines are highly congested. Solar provides a key opportunity to avoid this congestion by generating more electricity in the south - and so meet demands locally.”

New pylons

The new government’s push to solar gives Britain a chance to make a rapid improvement in its power output from renewable energy sources. The decision to scrap the moratorium on onshore wind energy plants will provide a further boost to this goal. However, that spur for renewables will bring its own problems as it will have to be followed – quickly – by improvements to the national grid whose capacity is now heavily strained, experts have warned. “If we are going to turn our backs on fossil fuels and electrify society, we need to be able to move power across the country without serious restriction,” said Srivastav. “Improving the UK grid should be seen as a key priority,” she said, or else the country would not be able to go ahead with electrification of vehicles and transport. This view is backed by Beath. “Alongside the building of renewables capacity, you need to make big changes to our network,” said Beath. “It will require new pylons, transmission lines and new cables under the sea.”

Farmers revolt

The need to make vast improvements to the national grid will come at a political price that will set landowners and farmers in battles against city planners and power utilities. The Mallard Pass solar farm is opposed by 3,000 people who say prime farmland should not be repurposed to generate electricity and the local Tory MP Alicia Kearns has said she is “utterly appalled” by the scheme. The government defends the development on the grounds that it will provide clean energy that will power about 92,000 homes over the next 60 years.

Reliance on China

There is one other headache for ministers as they strive to reach net zero in a decade or so. China makes about 80% of the world’s solar panels while Britain has no manufacturing capacity. This gives China a “chokehold” on Britain’s solar industry.