In the past month, further heatwaves across the UK continued to have extreme impacts on the environment and communities, with drought across half of England and all of Wales¹. With such weather events becoming more frequent, it’s important that renewable energy and technologies continue to grow, to mitigate increased electricity demand from the adoption of air conditioning.

In September’s Bryt Insight, you can read about the action the UK Government is taking to free up the grid connection queue to enable renewable projects, alongside research projecting significant growth for Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS). For more about these stories, along with positive milestones in renewable energy, read on below:

August’s long-term wholesale electricity prices consistently increased throughout the month. Front annual electricity prices (which set 12-month prices from the start of the next electricity season) were the highest seen in 3 years. These high prices were due to:

• The continuing Israel/US-Iran conflict, following failed efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which is expected to disrupt Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and oil supply. The market has reflected this uncertainty regarding supply through increased long-term wholesale electricity prices.
• Rising gas prices, which were driven by the Israel/US-Iran conflict. As the price of gas often still sets the cost of electricity in the UK and across Europe, this caused electricity prices to increase.
• Low gas supply availability for winter, with gas storage levels across Europe still at a 5-year low. This has been exacerbated by increased coal prices, which has brought up European electricity prices, whilst drought conditions across Europe may impact whether European hydro plants will be available for use over the winter, further limiting supply.

Short-term wholesale electricity prices increased throughout August, with some quite significant fluctuations. This was due to several factors.

• Heatwaves
  The heatwaves caused a combination of both higher demand and reduced supply. Throughout August, the UK and Europe saw increased electricity demand, due to greater need for cooling (i.e. air conditioning and electric fans). The extreme heat also caused reduced efficiency for some thermal generation (for example, gas, oil, coal and nuclear), as this is most efficient with moist and cool air – therefore limiting supply. There was also a reduction in electricity supply as French nuclear generation plants had to curtail output when river temperatures were too high for them to be used to cool reactors. As a result, French nuclear production fell by 12%, compared to late July.
• UK energy generation
  Following a windy beginning to August, wind output also declined across the UK and France. This lower renewable generation increased reliance on more expensive gas-fired generation.
• Imports
  With wind and nuclear generation reduced in Europe, exports to Britain were reduced, limiting availability of supply. French wind generation dropped by around 15%, whilst less rain meant that hydro energy output declined by around 10% – with the reduced nuclear generation, this meant that interconnector imports from France into Britain were over 20% lower than in late July.

Towards the end of August, some of these short-term impacts eased. Generation levels increased, with maintenance completing at four UK nuclear plants and wind generation increasing. Temperatures across Europe also started to cool, reducing demand for air conditioning. As a result, whilst short-term wholesale prices continued to increase, this was at a lower level than long-term prices.

Looking ahead, both long-term and short-term wholesale electricity prices are expected to remain high.

Long-term looking forward

Long-term wholesale electricity prices are likely to continue to be impacted by the Israel/US-Iran conflict, with the blockade of the Straits of Hormuz affecting the availability of worldwide oil and LNG supply. Low gas storage levels are also likely to continue to cause long-term electricity prices to increase as the UK and Europe look to fill this storage ahead of winter, with EU gas storage levels at the lowest point seen in 5 years.

Low water levels, due to drought, may continue to impact the availability of hydro power, with Norwegian water levels at nearly the lowest in the last 20 years. This lower supply of hydro power may cause long-term prices to increase. Similarly, there has been low water levels in the Rhine River, impacting the transport of coal barges and decreasing supply. Recent increased rain levels may lessen the impact of these factors, although the current high price of coal may mean that increased rain and transport through the Rhine River may not reduce the cost of electricity.

Short-term looking forward

Short-term wholesale electricity prices may be impacted by maintenance at one of Heysham nuclear reactors, which starts early September and is expected to last 3 months, limiting nuclear supply.

Weather is also likely be a key driver for short-term wholesale electricity prices. Cooler, more seasonal weather is expected through the start of September, helping to reduce demand for cooling in the short term and bringing down prices. However, the Super El Niño (a weather system that may impact temperatures and weather in some areas) that appears to be starting in the Pacific, is pointing towards a tumultuous winter. As very cold weather usually leads to low wind generation and higher demand for heating, this, in combination with the lower gas storage, may contribute towards elevated prices.

The cost of Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin (REGO) certificates has remained relatively stable over the month of August. Slight reductions from lower activity in the markets were seen in the middle of the month, before prices returned to the same levels as at the start of the month.

A consultation has been launched by Ofgem, to gather feedback on their plans to limit ‘speculative’ data centre projects in Britain, and therefore free up the grid connection queue for projects that are most ready to be connected. Proposals for achieving this goal includes:

• A Data Centre Connection Fee, which would be returned once the project is live, or lost if the project fails to reach completion.
• Project progress milestones, which would require developers to show their progress through evidence, in order to keep their place in the queue.

These plans follow a rise in connection applications, with expected demand from data centre projects growing from 41GW to 125GW in under a year. This increase has been primarily driven by the rise in data centre projects, which made up at least 80GW of this demand². Ofgem is concerned that many of these projects may not reach completion, delaying other projects that are ready for connection and creating misleading information about future electricity demand levels. These plans aim to limit the impact of these speculative projects by enforcing a financial commitment to the completion of the project.
The consultation on these plans ends 16^th September 2026.

To find out how to have your say about Ofgem’s plans before then, visit here³.

Global Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) capacity is expected to grow, from 224.8GW (at the end of 2025) to roughly 1,300GW in 2030, according to a recent report. This shows a 42% compound annual growth rate, and close to six-fold increase over the next five years. 

As renewable energy increases on the grid and the system decarbonises, BESS deployment will be a key solution to the intermittency of renewables at times of high demand, helping to balance supply and demand in the coming years. The UK’s Clean Power 2030 target aims for 23-27GW of grid-scale battery storage, and BESS projects that are in the queue to connect to the grid already total 14.8GW more than that target⁴.  

To read more about the report’s findings, visit here⁵.

Solar power made up a record amount of Britain’s grid mix in July

A record-breaking amount (14.4%) of the grid’s electricity grid mix came from farm and rooftop solar in July. This was largely due to an especially sunny summer, as well as a surge in domestic solar installations. The record beats the previous figure, which was 12.4% in May and is 50% higher than July 2025’s solar mix. In the first half of 2026, the UK has seen a total of 142,536 solar array installations, setting up this year to beat the record set last year.

Solar PV can help to meet increased demand for electricity-powered cooling over summer, but there are considerations for businesses who look to implement it on their site. You can read more about this milestone, here⁶.

£7.5 million investment from Great British Energy in UK thermal solar supply chain

Great British Energy have invested £7.5 million in a UK solar supply chain, British renewable-heat company Naked Energy, which will develop an automated manufacturing facility for solar thermal technology (heating water using solar power). This £7.5 million investment will be part of an £8.9 million investment, and will help to create up to 140 jobs and unlock new export opportunities.

Solar thermal technology replaces the natural gas that is still often used to heat water, spaces and processes, and can therefore help businesses to decarbonise their operations and minimise their energy bills when there are gas price spikes. Such investment in UK solar is expected to generate benefits for supply chains (such as new jobs and increased investment) and help to retain British competitiveness through a strengthened solar industry, whilst giving organisations opportunity to further decarbonise their operations beyond on-site solar PV.

You can read more about this update, here⁷.

Statkraft have achieved planning consent for solar project in Cornwall solar farm

Planning consent has now been secured for Statkraft’s Trerice Solar Farm, located in St Dennis, Cornwall. Each year, the site is expected to generate enough renewable electricity to power the equivalent of more than 10,000 homes. The project will consist of a 32MW solar farm, with a BESS also on the site. This co-location of the solar farm and BESS will allow for the renewable solar power to be stored and exported to the grid in times of high demand, to help balance supply and demand.

The final plans, which have now been approved, saw input from the local community alongside other stakeholders, to ensure that the local area and its residents had been considered. The project is also expected to deliver biodiversity benefits, alongside 1.4km of new footpaths. The construction phase of the project will open opportunities for local businesses and suppliers, and across the project’s 40-year lifespan, there will be an estimated £1.6 million of business rates to Cornwall Council. Once operational, the solar farm will provide an estimated Community Benefit Funding of £400,000 across the project’s lifetime.

To read more about this encouraging update, visit here⁸.

Statkraft receives consent for the next stage of their Coylton Greener Grid Park

Statkraft’s Coylton Greener Grid Park, located in East Ayrshire, has received consent for its second phase of the project, which will add an additional 100MW BESS to the site. The first phase of the project is in its final stages of commissioning, and consists of a 50MW battery, which will help to increase stability on the grid.

Greener Grid Parks help to provide stability and maintain the frequency on the grid, through the use of innovative technology, and can help to increase the renewable power that can be transmitted through the grid. The inclusion of this 100MW BESS will help the site to deliver flexibility to the grid, reducing reliance on fossil fuels when demand is high.

Statkraft currently has two live Greener Grid Parks in the UK, as well as projects across Scotland, northern England, Norfolk and Wales currently in progress. To find out more about this news, visit here⁹.

If you have any questions about how these updates might affect you or would like to find out more, our team of experts are happy to provide further insight. You can contact them on 0330 053 8620 or here.