70GW solar target risks being missed, MPs warn

The government faces a “considerable shortfall” in meeting its target to install 70GW of solar generation by 2035, a cross party group of MPs has warned energy secretary Grant Shapps.

The House of Commons Environment Audit Committee has written today (4 May) to the secretary of state for energy security and net zero outlining conclusions and recommendations arising from its recently concluded inquiry into onshore solar power.

The committee welcomes the ambition, set out in last year’s British Energy Security Strategy (BESS), to increase solar energy generation capacity fivefold from current levels to up to 70GW by 2035.

However the report says that achieving this goal will be challenging given existing barriers and current rates of deployment.

And it warns that unless the barriers identified are addressed with “some urgency” a “very considerable shortfall” in installed capacity, compared with the target set out in the BESS, is likely.

The committee says current rates of deployment of rooftop solar need to double to reach the 70GW target, citing Solar UK figures showing this implies around 23GW, 18GW more than currently.

According to an estimate by University of Liverpool researchers, the letter says this  level of deployment would require an average monthly installation rate of 361 MW, which they say is achievable based on the previous peak in rooftop solar roll out seen when the UK’s system of Feed in Tariff incentives was in place.

The committee urges the government and its recently established solar taskforce to set out milestones for installation levels to achieve the 2035 target.

This will provide impetus to efforts by the regulator and DNOs to remove grid connection barriers, which the committee identifies as a chief source of the “dark cloud of delay” hanging over the industry.

Difficulties in securing grid connections are a key barrier to rolling out renewables at the speed necessary to achieve the government’s stated ambitions, it says, citing delays of up to 15 years.

“This is not only holding back the UK from achieving its decarbonisation goals, but it is also hampering the economy by preventing businesses and households from investing in solar PV installations to reduce their energy costs,” the letter says.

The committee urges the government to work with the DNOs and National Grid ESO (electricity system operator) to seek short-term solutions to unblock this pipeline of delays.

Examples of short-term fixes suggested by solar companies included encouraging DNOs and National Grid to drop requirements for what they say are unnecessary limits on the power that their plants can send to the grid.

Another example is streamlining of queue management systems.

The letter also says Ofgem must be required to change the way it assesses investment from the DNOs and the National Grid in order to accelerated investment, which it says the committee will be investigating in its upcoming inquiry into grid connection, also announced today.

The letter also calls on the government to ensure that installation of solar PV and heat pumps is a minimum requirement for new build housing when the Future Homes Standard low carbon building regulation is introduced.

And it recommends the extension of the zero-rate of VAT for the installation of certain energy saving materials, introduced in March 2022’s Budget, to battery storage.