Key markets in 2024: UK photovoltaic installations “explode”

Rystad Energy's forecast points out that from 2022 to September 2023, new residential and large-scale ground photovoltaic installations in the UK will be 2.9GW, bringing the total installed capacity in the UK to 18.1GW.

This marks a significant increase in solar PV installation rates compared with the 0.9GW added between 2021 and 2022.

This means that the installed solar photovoltaic capacity in 2023 will exceed that of the past six years combined.

The power services company revealed that this growth will continue, with the UK expected to reach 4.6GW of installed PV capacity by 2024.

However, since this technology is not centrally dispatched, solar energy will continue to be exported to the grid regardless of demand. Therefore, as photovoltaic capacity increases, wholesale electricity prices will plummet.

Drax's "Electric Insights" quarterly report also shows that the third quarter of this year was the lowest quarter in the UK's history, with emissions falling to 143g/kWh.

According to the electricity services company, this is the first time the UK has exceeded the 150g/kWh milestone in a quarter. Prior to this, the UK’s carbon intensity had stagnated since 2020, hovering at just under 180g/kWh.

The third quarter of 2023 will be the UK’s lowest ever carbon emissions quarter