Battery storage holds the keys to the UK net zero transition

The UK is on track to waste billions on renewable energy unless we fix the biggest gap in our clean energy transition – battery storage, writes Giles Hanglin, CEO of Apatura.

The government’s Clean Power 2030 (CP30) action plan sets a bold target, but the real challenge is turning that ambition into reality. The policy sets a target grid capacity of up to 27 gigawatts of storage batteries by 2030, a sixfold increase from the 4.5 gigawatts currently installed.

This expansion is critical to a clean energy shift – batteries store surplus generated renewable energy when it’s available for when the wind doesn’t blow, and the sun doesn’t shine and also provide critical balancing services to the UK grid network.

Yet despite this importance, this ‘missing middle’ of our green transition is often neglected, with the conversation far too focused on generation and usage. Without a robust national grid to transport and store energy, the UK’s transition to clean power and net zero emissions is at risk. The lack of storage also means we’re wasting clean energy and paying billions in unnecessary curtailment costs, money that could be reinvested into the energy transition.

Despite enormous progress over the last decade or so, the UK still relies on fossil fuels, and our aging, creaking energy infrastructure is in dire need of an upgrade if we’re to successfully decarbonise. If we fail to modernise our grid at speed, we risk missing our net zero targets and failing to secure energy independence. It’s not just funding that is an obstacle for critical upgrades. A lengthy grid backlog and extensive waiting times for approved projects to connect to the grid is severely impeding meaningful progress.

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Prioritising the right upgrades

With the grid queue oversubscribed and hundreds of projects in limbo, upgrading our infrastructure must be smarter, not just focused on scale. When connecting critical infrastructure like battery storage sites, the key factor must be project readiness. This means prioritising projects that have secured land rights, advanced planning status and full planning consent.

The National Energy System Operator (NESO) is taking steps to prioritise ready-to-go projects. Its new mechanism ensures battery energy storage systems (BESS) with planning permission and grid connections progress quickly or face losing their place in the grid queue if they don’t.

This measure prevents developers hoarding vital grid capacity with half-finished projects that won’t be built for years to come, instead favouring ready-to-go developments. Connecting live projects will immediately boost the UK’s clean energy supply, delivering valuable new jobs and economic activity – something I’m sure Rachel Reeves would appreciate.

Backing the battery storage horse

Many BESS projects nationwide are ready to be connected now. They are central to CP30 and will serve as the backbone of our future electricity grid. Fast-tracking all the wind and solar projects without prioritising storage is a mistake. Right now, the UK is paying over £ 1 billion a year in curtailment costs because we have nowhere to store excess wind generated power.

If we keep adding generation without storage and grid network upgrades, we’re locking ourselves into higher curtailment costs and grid instability. The solution is clear, prioritise battery storage now or continue to pay billions for years to come – with some estimates as high as £8 billion in the worst case scenario.

We must build generation and storage together – anything else will be an expensive failure – but for new grid connections the priority should be battery storage. This approach improves our energy security and reliability, being able to store any excess renewable energy for use at peak times or for days when we’re unable to meet demand through generation alone. The more you delve into it, the more it becomes clear that BESS is critical infrastructure that will underpin the rest of the renewable energy transition.

Economic implications, the cost of delay

Without large scale storage investment, the UK’s transition will be far more costly, drawn and riskier. Worse still, the window of opportunity for many high-growth markets will close if don’t prioritise investment. These new industries will power the economy of tomorrow, so we must be ready to scale and futureproof our capacity.

Look at data centres. These facilities are already massive energy consumers, and their role in AI and machine learning means their demand will skyrocket.

For data centre operators, it’s more plentiful large scale electricity connections, or lack of, that are a dealbreaker. Scotland has clean power in abundance, but the lack of storage means that as soon as that generation stops, it’s back to expensive fossil fuels. Even if this lasts a few hours, it’s an expensive problem.

With on-site, co-located or local BESS capacity that switch isn’t required. We’re able to keep these data centres powered on stored renewable energy alone. This means lower energy bills, a lower carbon footprint, and a stronger investment case for the UK.

The Labour Government last year designated data centres as Critical National Infrastructure. If they are serious about making the UK a global leader in AI and tech, they must prioritise BESS infrastructure. If it is on the government’s radar, we need to see policy reform to drive progress.

What Labour must do to drive action

For the sake of the economy alone, Labour needs to be incentivising Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) and NESO to prioritise projects through financial incentives and policy reform. There are three tangible things that the country can be doing to help support the industry.

Firstly, we need Labour’s commitment to maintaining net zero policies for generation and storage projects. It’s paramount that business has a stable environment to work in, and if policy shifts or funding is pulled, it will only serve to dampen investor confidence and slow the pace of BESS rollout.

Secondly, we need an improved planning process if make it easier to gain consents for BESS projects. Renewable uptake is paramount to our economic future, and at the moment projects can be bogged down in the application process for months before they’re even considered by planners.

Finally, enhancing the training programs available and developing our workforce will ensure the UK has the talent it needs to power the clean energy transition. The quicker and easier we’re able to upskill the workforce, the fastest and more futureproofed our economy becomes.

Conclusion

The clean energy transition doesn’t just need investment, it needs smarter priorities, and emphasising BESS will put us ahead of the international competition.

At the bare minimum, we need to hold steadfast on our current commitments to upgrade the grid to achieve CP30 and a net zero future. If we don’t, we’ll slip into our usual pattern of under-funding, development, and losing investor confidence in the UK market.

We’ve seen it before with changing government policies and support for the energy sector, it can’t happen again. We are already paying for the consequences of years of under-investment in our national grid, and the bottlenecks in planning and connections is slowing our green transition.

We don’t have time to waste. If we don’t act now, the UK risks losing not just our climate goals but also its economic and energy security.

About the author

Giles Hanglin brings over 15 years of expertise in the renewable energy and energy storage sectors and leads Apatura as CEO.