2024 was a record-breaking year for renewables globally, and developments from the past month promise more progress to come. In April’s Bryt Insight, we spotlight some major developments in both wind and solar energy, including significant installation milestones and increasingly positive public attitudes, as well as the UK Government’s plans to further support the growth of renewable energy in 2025. In addition to this, we also highlight the progress of low-carbon technologies that will help the UK to decarbonise, including electric vehicles (EVs) and smart meters.

From decreasing carbon emissions to the creation of new national forests, read more about the key highlights in sustainability and energy from the last month:

The first couple of weeks of March were a volatile time for the UK electricity markets. Prices fell due to a range of factors, before rising again following the forecast of colder weather, which increased demand. As we reached the middle of the month, prices fell to levels not seen since December 2024, due to a combination of milder weather conditions and increased renewable generation output helping to balance supply and demand.

Almost as soon as the market saw these lows, geopolitical events increased wholesale electricity prices again. This has included uncertainty regarding the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, as well as around the US’s trade tariffs. Whilst prices decreased towards the end of the month, due to waning electricity demand from lighter evenings and warmer weather, they haven’t returned to the lows of the prices seen in the middle of the month.

Short-term wholesale electricity prices have been even more volatile than long-term prices. The main reasons for this are the low wind generation levels seen at the start of the month and reduced nuclear supply, due to planned maintenance. This lack of generation meant that more gas was used in the grid mix, which increased prices. This remained the case until the middle of the month, when the highest prices for the month were reached on a day with very low wind generation.

As we moved in the second half of the month, the longer days and milder weather, as mentioned above, pulled prices down as electricity demand decreased. Imports from Europe, where German renewables generation increased greatly, helped reduce the UK’s reliance on gas generation, therefore leading to a decrease in short-term wholesale electricity prices.

As with all the markets currently, the US imposing tariffs and the risk of retaliations is causing uncertainty in the wholesale electricity market. This, in theory, should see electricity prices fall, if an economic slowdown is caused. An economic slowdown would cause a reduction in electricity demand, as manufacturing slows, which may decrease wholesale electricity prices. However, if availability of parts for maintenance of generation fleets is affected because of the slowdown, maintenance periods will be extended, which would therefore tighten supply and increase prices. This is especially concerning during the summer, when lots of maintenance is already planned.

The possibility of a ceasefire in the Ukraine should also cause prices to decrease, but again, there is uncertainty around this, and changes in the conflict can affect market sentiment and could cause prices to rise again.

As we move into the summer months, the weather will have a large impact on renewable generation levels and overall demand, which will subsequently affect prices. The current Met Office view is that we are more likely to see an above-average temperature in summer across Europe, with rain slightly below the average. This indicates that there could be an excess of solar generation across Europe, but also an increase in demand from air conditioning. There is also the possibility of the French nuclear fleet having to reduce output because of high water temperatures in the rivers that are used to cool them. These factors are likely to balance out the price impact but also opens it up to short-term volatility.

With all the above considered, this points towards a fairly volatile period, with wholesale electricity prices remaining near to current positions.

Prices for Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin certificates (REGOs) for the compliance period that has just ended (April 2024-March 2025) and the current compliance period (April 2025-March 2026) have fallen to the lowest levels since 2021. The cost of REGOs for future compliance years have also fallen, but aren’t down to those levels yet. The influx of new renewable generation in the UK, as well as some drop in demand for these renewable products, has led to these price drops.

2024 was another record-breaking year for wind turbine installations, with a total of 121.6 gigawatts (GW) of wind power capacity coming online across the globe – double the amount that was commissioned in 2019¹. Onshore wind made up 90%, or 109.9GW, of these installations, with offshore wind capacity additions totalling at 11.7GW. The report found that China accounted for 70% of global installations, and currently has the largest project pipeline for offshore wind. As highlighted in last month’s Bryt Insight, the UK follows this in second place, with 96GW of offshore wind capacity in project stage, so we anticipate more record-breaking years to come.

To add to this news, the UK Government has made a significant investment in floating offshore wind, through the Floating Offshore Wind Manufacturing Investment Scheme (FLOWMIS)². The £55.7 million investment goes to the Port of Cromarty Firth, Scotland, marking it as the first UK port that will be able to develop and deploy floating wind turbines at scale. The construction of the port is expected to create up to 320 jobs and will require as many as 1,000 skilled workers, once operational in 2028.

In another positive development, the UK Government have announced that the UK and Ireland will collaborate closely to support offshore wind in the Celtic Sea³. In order to facilitate more development in this area, the two countries will establish a new data-sharing arrangement and will work to enable better subsea interconnectors to deliver renewable electricity between the nations.

As a key source in our fuel mix, we are pleased to see such progress in the development of wind power, both nationally and globally, and are keen to see what else 2025 brings in the wind energy industry.

Solar growth

The UK solar energy sector is also making major progress, surpassing the milestone of 18GW of operational solar PV capacity installed, according to data from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ)⁴. As of the end of February 2025, 1,735,000 solar PV arrays had been installed across the UK. This marks a 6.8% increase, or an additional 1.1GW, compared to a year prior, with 80MW of solar capacity being added in February 2025 alone.

Shifting attitudes

As the UK’s solar capacity increases, attitudes towards this technology are also shifting. Research has revealed that the UK public have grown increasingly supportive of solar farms. In a recent survey⁵, 77% of respondents were in favour of the development of solar farms in their local area, and over half of those surveyed revealed that their attitude towards solar energy has become more positive. The majority also believe that solar should be a priority to achieve the UK’s national target of net zero.

According to the survey, awareness of the biodiversity benefits of solar farms has also increased. The number of respondents who were unaware that solar farms could contribute to increasing biodiversity fell from 42% in 2023, to 11%. Nevertheless, when asked about the key benefits of solar farms, biodiversity improvements placed last, while the supply of low-cost renewable energy was first. Minimising the environmental impact of solar when developing solar farms remained the most common issue for respondents, demonstrating that more can still be done to provide clearer communication around the benefits of solar in the UK.

Financial benefits of solar

In encouraging news, recent research has affirmed that solar power is helping to support agriculture and farmers, with solar installations helping to boost their income. In a survey of 271 farmers⁶, 37% said that additional revenue from solar would help them secure their farm for future generations. While only 40% of respondents had a type of renewable energy installed, of those without, 30% said that having solar panels would help them feel financially stable, showcasing the increased awareness of the financial benefits of solar and other types of renewables.

UK schools and hospitals could also see the financial benefits of on-site solar PV, with Great British Energy investing almost £200 million into rooftop solar⁷. This is projected to create £400 million in cost savings for schools and hospitals over the next 30 years, which will then be reinvested into these sectors. The installation of solar will help the schools and hospitals become more self-sufficient and could support school children to have a better understanding of how renewable energy works.

It’s encouraging to see the growth of solar and the shift in public perception, as more organisations become increasingly aware of the benefits that solar can provide.

Premier League’s first environmental sustainability strategy

The Premier League has published their first strategy for environmental sustainability⁸, which includes their net zero target for 2040 and plans to educate their Academy players with climate knowledge.

This strategy builds on their previous environmental commitment from 2024, which established standards for environmental action, and their signatory to the UN Sports for Climate Action Framework in 2021.

The new strategy discloses the League’s carbon emissions footprint and takes their environmental commitment further, pledging them to address three priority areas for change: adapting the business to reach net zero, future-proofing through decarbonisation, and expanding their influence in sustainability to football fans, by engaging them through a range of platforms and programmes. Here at Bryt Energy, we’re pleased to see how sustainability is being the adopted across many different sectors, as well as the prioritisation of climate change awareness in the Premier League.

UK surpasses milestone of 75,000 public electric vehicle (EV) charge points

As of the end of February 2025, the UK saw a 32% yearly increase in the installation of public electric vehicle (EV) charge points, according to recent data⁹. The UK has surpassed 75,675 charge points, representing a significant milestone in the UK Government’s target of installing 300,000 public charge points by 2030¹⁰.

Encouragingly, in the same month, 25% of all cars sold were EVs, and in 2024, the UK was Europe’s largest EV market, with 382,000 EVs sold. As a Birmingham-based business, we are also pleased to report that last month, the Government announced a £40.8 million contribution to EV charging infrastructure in the Midlands – with over 16,000 public charge points planned¹¹. This will help the decarbonisation of transport in this area and hopefully encourage further adoption of EVs.

Greenhouse gas emissions fell by 3.6% in the UK in 2024

In 2024, UK greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions fell by 3.6% compared to the previous year, according to recent analysis by Carbon Brief¹². Annual emissions fell to the lowest level since 1872, totalling 371 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e). Coal demand also decreased by 54% to 2 million tonnes, the lowest seen since 1666. The decreasing emissions was largely due to the closure of the UK’s last coal power plant and the drop in coal use by heavy industry, as well as the uptake of electric cars, which subsequently decreased oil use.

Although this is encouraging progress, there’s still work to do; the UK needs to progressively cut its emissions further each year in order to reach its 2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) target, which was submitted last month as part of the Paris Agreement, as well as to meet its 2050 net zero target. We look forward to seeing the continuing decrease in UK emissions, as we move towards a net zero future.

25 millionth smart meter installed in Great Britain

Great Britain has surpassed the milestone of 25 million smart meter installations in February, marking 25.15 million installations since the rollout began being tracked in 2012¹³. In February 2025 alone, 194,000 smart meters were installed in Great Britain.

It’s encouraging to see the increasing uptake of smart meters, as not only can they reduce the need for manual meter reads and help make bills more accurate; they also play an essential role in achieving net zero. As we move towards a system powered by renewables, smart meters help the grid to efficiently manage electricity generation, distribution and consumption, playing an important part in creating a ‘smart grid’.

To find out more about smart meters, you can read our myth-busting Q&A.

UK Government plans to create new national forest with 20 million trees

A new national forest is being planned by the UK Government, and will span from the Cotswolds to the Mendips¹⁴. The Western Forest will cover 2,500 hectares and consist of 20 million trees, to be planted by 2050. Charitable trust, the Forest of Avon, will lead the project, and the Government will provide £7.5 million in funding over 5 years.

This plan is part of the Government’s wider manifesto commitment to create three new national forests. This new forest will create jobs and boost the economy, whilst supporting habitats for wildlife and further connecting communities to nature. The forest will also have the added benefit of capturing and storing carbon dioxide in the trees. 73% of the forest will be dedicated to agriculture, thereby encouraging and supporting farmers with agroforestry and farm woodlands. The forest will also assist the UK in meeting its legally binding targets to increase woodland cover, alongside wider global targets to protect 30% of land for nature by 2030.

Statkraft release their annual report

As part of the Statkraft Group, we are excited to share Statkraft’s newly launched 2024 annual report, which showcases their progress in delivering their business strategy to create value by enabling a net zero future. The report covers highlights from across the year, their financial progress, and their new, comprehensive sustainability strategy. This strategy is Statkraft’s first integrated annual report which aligns with the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), the EU’s ‘gold standard’ for sustainability disclosures. This demonstrates Statkraft’s market leadership and dedication to transparency, with the report outlining how they will drive towards a “green and just transition”.

The report highlights key achievements for Statkraft in 2024, such as the completion of Statkraft’s acquisition of Spanish-based renewables business Enerfin, which added seven wind farms to their portfolio, and their plan to build a new hydropower plant at Svean power plant in Trondheim, Norway. The report also recognises Statkraft’s progress with their pumped storage hydro projects Loch na Cathrach in Scotland, which recently won ‘Best Engagement’ at the Scottish Green Energy Awards for their work with the local community on the project.

You can find out more about Statkraft’s journey throughout 2024 in Statkraft’s annual report, here¹⁵.

If you have any questions on how any of the updates might affect your business, our team of experts is on hand to answer them. You can get in touch with us on 0330 053 8620 or at heretohelp@brytenergy.co.uk.