Key Takeaways
Advances in solar technology and efficiency are making home solar panels more accessible and affordable in Britain.
Government incentives and renewable energy policies drive adoption, supporting the nation’s net-zero goals.
Improved storage solutions and grid integration allow homeowners to maximise energy independence.
Home solar panels are positioned to significantly shape Britain’s energy future, enabling households to harness clean, sustainable energy.
It’s summer, the sun is shining (at the time of writing anyway), and this seems like the perfect time to think about solar power. Solar power is the fastest growing renewable energy source in the world1 – but what does its future look like in Britain? As the country strives to reach its net zero target by 2050, solar is going to have an increasingly important role to play.
What is solar power?
Let’s start with the basics. Solar power converts sunlight into electricity or heat, which in turn helps to keep homes, businesses and communities running smoothly.
Solar power is a renewable energy souce, meaning it won’t run out even as we keep using it. Better yet, it also reduces our reliance on harmful fossil fuels. Solar panels generate electricity or heat without producing greenhouse gases, reducing our impact on climate change and the environment.
How fast is solar power growing?
Right now, solar energy is the fastest growing renewable technology in the world, closely followed by wind energy. Since the turn of the century, the amount of energy produced by sunlight has risen from under 1,000GWh to over 1,000,000GWh1.
Technological advancements, falling costs, and supportive government policies are helping to drive the expansion of solar power and other renewable technologies in Britain and around the world.
What is the energy mix in Britain?
Our ‘energy mix’ is a combination of different energy sources (such as fossil fuels, nuclear energy and renewables) that meet our energy needs. In Britain, renewable energy sources have played an increasingly important role in our energy mix.
Let’s take a look at how our energy mix has changed over time.
1991. Renewable energy sources made up just 2% of all electricity generated in the UK2. 2013. UK renewable energy generation rose to 14.6%2. 2017. Britain became one of Europe’s leaders in the growth of renewable energy generation2. 2019. Renewable electricity production (with zero carbon emissions) overtook fossil fuels for the first time2. 2023. The UK’s greenest year on record, with the lowest carbon intensity ever recorded2. Today. So far this year, renewable energy sources have made up 50.9% of electricity generated in the UK. That’s more than triple what we were generating a decade ago3.
While wind power makes up the biggest share of renewable energy sources in Britain, solar power is continuing to grow – 20 April 2023 saw the highest ever solar generation record at 10.971GW2.
What are some technological advances in solar power?
Advances in solar technology help to make it more efficient and versatile. Some exciting innovations from the solar industry include:
New solar panel materials: Building solar panels from new photovoltaic materials, such as perovskites, could make them more efficient than traditional silicon-based solar cells. Organic photovoltaic materials also help to create transparent and flexible solar panels, which makes them easier to incorporate into windows – so they’re adaptable for different homes4.
Solar skins: This new invention can be laid over solar panels so they blend in with the roof of your home. So for people who are concerned about the appearance of traditional panels, solar skins are a great incentive.
Floating solar farms: You’ve heard of offshore wind farms, but have you heard of offshore solar farms? Traditional solar farms can take up land, which is expensive and might be needed for other reasons like agriculture or housebuilding. That’s why the idea of floating solar plants is catching on. It involves installing solar panels onto floating platforms in water, such as lakes and reservoirs. Europe’s largest floating solar panel array was funded and completed in March 2016 by Lightsource bp on London’s Queen Elizabeth II reservoir.
What role will UK government policies and incentives play in supporting solar power?
As well as technological advances, supportive government policies help to drive the growth of solar power. The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) is a UK government obligation for larger energy suppliers to offer an export tariff that pays customers for excess electricity they generate from renewable technologies, such as solar panels. Customers effectively sell their excess power back to the grid.
E.ON Next is a mandated SEG licensee so if you install solar panels, you could get SEG payments through us.
The UK government also offers a Home Upgrade Grant to homeowners and landlords, which provides up to £10,000 in funding to energy inefficient households in 45 select local authorities across England. The grant opened in April 2023 and will run until March 2025. It can be used to fund home improvements, including solar thermal and solar PV panels. As of February 2024, 28% of the grants handed out have been for solar panels5.
What is the role of business in the expansion of solar power?
It’s not just homeowners that can start using solar power – businesses have a big role to play as well. If they use solar power to generate their own electricity, they can reduce their bills in the long run. This makes solar panels a worthwhile investment. Thanks to the Smart Export Guarantee, companies can also bring in some extra revenue by selling their excess power back to the grid.
Solar power can also give businesses greater energy security. This means they don’t need to rely as much on other energy sources, which are affected by global events. If businesses can generate more of their own power, they can better predict their energy costs, which helps them plan for the future.
Why aren't solar panels mandatory on new buildings?
New builds need to meet certain energy efficiency standards – the Future Homes and Building Standards, to be precise6. Solar panels are often used to help achieve this. There is certainly a case for making solar panels mandatory on new buildings, as it can help to reduce the nation’s carbon footprint and energy bills in the long run. However, there are some reasons why solar installations are not mandatory yet.
For example, solar panels can make construction more expensive, which has a knock-on effect on house prices – they become less affordable. Some developers also argue that installing solar panels could delay construction projects, at a time when housing is in high demand.
It’s also worth bearing in mind that the look of solar panels isn’t to everyone’s taste. While some technological advances help to improve or mask their appearance, there are still concerns about it changing the look of local communities.
Rather than just relying on solar panels, it can be more cost-effective to improve energy efficiency through different methods, like insulation and double-glazing. Some also argue that other renewable energy sources like wind power or heat pumps might be more suitable in certain instances.
What is the future of solar power in the UK?
Despite some challenges, the future of solar power is looking bright in the UK.
Strong growth: Thanks to solar technology advances, lower costs and government support, solar power is expected to keep growing over the next decade. By 2030, some experts think solar energy could make up as much as 20% of the UK’s total electricity generation7.
Better storage technology: To help solar power flourish as an energy source, we need batteries and other energy storage systems. They allow homeowners and companies to keep the excess solar energy they generate and use it at a later point. As the cost of energy storage is falling, more homes and businesses can store their own solar power, which helps make it a more reliable and sustainable energy source.
Community solar projects: For people who can’t install solar panels on their own property, community solar projects are a great alternative. Community projects allow individuals and organisations to invest in a shared solar energy system together, which they can all use. This also gives residents a greater sense of ownership over clean energy developments in their area.
Could the UK run on solar power?
While we’re some way off Britain running solely on solar power, research suggests that wind and solar power could combine to supply all of the country’s energy in the future.
A policy brief published by Oxford’s Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment suggested that wind and solar could provide significantly more energy than the highest energy demand forecasts for 2050 and nearly ten times current electricity demand (299 TWh/year). The research shows up to 2,896 TWh a year could be generated by wind and solar, against the demand forecast of 1,500 TWh/year8.
Another research project carried out by the University of Exeter and commissioned by Friends of the Earth suggested that England could produce 13 times more renewable energy than it does now. The research indicates that onshore wind and solar projects could provide enough electricity to power all the households in England two and a half times over9.
This amount of renewable energy would need significant upgrades to the grid and the scaling of energy storage. But, considering that the cost of energy storage is falling, the authors of the report believe these challenges could be overcome with the right investment and policy support.