How can we deliver Clean Power 2030?

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Sarah Long

Market Director, Net Zero Energy, Bristol, United Kingdom contact form

The UK’s commitment to decarbonising electricity generation by 2030 is more than a policy milestone; it’s a defining moment for the future of infrastructure, energy security, and climate resilience. But ambition alone won’t deliver results. To meet this target, we must engineer a transformation in how clean power is planned, financed, and built.

The scale of the challenge

Delivering Clean Power 2030 (CP2030) requires a seismic shift in deployment pace. Over the next five years, the UK must commission over 100 GW of new clean generation capacity, averaging 17.5 GW per year—a threefold increase from the past decade’s annual average of 5 GW. In a ramped-up deployment scenario, 53 GW could be needed in 2030 alone.

To reach this ambitious goal, wide-ranging changes to the incentives and mechanisms behind decarbonised electricity are needed.

Technology mix and strategic priorities

Offshore wind will account for the largest growth in generation to hit CP2030, but solar and onshore wind must play a critical role due to their shorter deployment timelines. Every committed project must be delivered, and many more initiated, to meet the scale of demand. Simultaneously, fossil fuel generation must be phased down from 26% of the mix in 2024 to no more than 5% by 2030.

The UK’s energy transition is not linear, and it demands agility across the entire energy ecosystem.

Mechanisms that must evolve

The Contract for Difference (CfD) scheme remains central to increasing investor confidence in renewable energy by providing long-term price certainty and reducing market risk for developers. AR7 and AR8 represent the final windows for offshore wind projects to be commissioned by 2030. Their success will be a litmus test for CP2030’s feasibility.

Other critical programmes, such as the Long Duration Energy Storage (LDES) cap and floor scheme and carbon capture cluster sequencing, require greater clarity and refinement to unlock their full potential.

Grid infrastructure: the enabler of scale

Clean power cannot flow without a modernised grid. Transmission and distribution upgrades are essential to connect new generation, reduce curtailment, and support electrification. Reforming connection queues and accelerating planning and consenting processes will be vital to unlocking latent capacity.

The proposed Planning and Infrastructure Bill, alongside the lifting of the de facto ban on onshore wind in England, signals progress but these advancements must be matched by investment in skills, materials, and delivery capability.

From vision to delivery

Achieving Clean Power 2030 is feasible, and with the known priorities and right investment it remains possible, however, every year of delay compounds the risk to delivery. The roadmap is clear: we must remove systemic barriers, align incentives, and scale delivery mechanisms. This is a moment for bold leadership, cross-sector collaboration, and engineering excellence.

Clean Power 2030 is not just about meeting a target; it’s about shaping a resilient, low-carbon future for generations to come.