Comment by Ben Shafran, Head of Markets, Policy and Regulation, at Energy Systems Catapult.

Even during the relatively quiet Christmas period, there was no shortage of Net Zero news. In this short blog I’ve hand-picked a few of those news pieces that relate to innovation.

Electric vehicles

2024 was a bumper year for battery electric vehicles (EVs). We witnessed rapid growth in EV sales and market share, with one in five cars sold in the UK now being an EV. The trend of more EVs and fewer diesel vehicles is truly something to shout about.

2025 promises to be even better for EV sales and growth. New manufacturers and models across a range of sizes are hitting the UK market every month, with more on the horizon. Chinese manufacturers are playing a significant part in this growth – with companies such as BYD making EVs even more financially accessible. EV sales in China itself are forecast to outpace internal combustion engines, according to analysis in the Financial Times. (China is not the first country where EVs would make up the majority of car sales: the Nordic countries reached this milestone first. In Norway, more than 90% of new cars are electric).

Policies can and should complement market-led growth, to help make EVs the best solution for every household that uses a car. The Department for Transpost is consulting on how to enact a ban on the sale of internal combustion engine cars from 2030. It has also set out guidance for local authorities on enabling more on-street charging, as well as identifying actions to improve the process for connecting EV charge points to the electricity networks.

Electrification of heat

In last month’s blog I listed the new policies and initiatives from government to support the switch to heat pumps. The latest piece of that puzzle comes from our own work at Energy Systems Catapult – insights from the most comprehensive large-scale trial of deploying heat pumps across the UK. Our Electrification of Heat final report, which was published alongside the treasure trove of data from the trial, highlighted that large-scale deployment of heat pumps in the UK is possible, and that heat pumps can be installed and work well in any type of property.

The trial also highlighted where further work is needed to make switching to a heat pump as simple as possible for households. Currently, the switch-over requires careful and bespoke system design, to best meet the specific needs of each household. Availability of space (e.g. for a hot water tank), or adjustments to the property (e.g. resizing radiators) were identified as some of the biggest barriers to installing a heat pump. These all add to the complexity and cost of switching to a heat pump, and this is where innovation can play a key role in improving the user experience without compromising on comfort.

For example, Nesta has proposed breaking the process down. First, making the home ‘heat pump-ready’ through energy efficiency improvements and such; only then in the second step, would a heat pump be installed. This has the appeal of spreading the cost of the transition. It would be interesting to test the idea with consumers.

The Great grid reorganisation

The next couple of years are going to see a dramatic transformation of how we approach the humble electricity grid. To deliver the 2030 Clean Power mission, the National Energy System Operator (NESO) has set out conditions for any project to become eligible for a grid connection offer, as well as a complicated methodology for how the connection queue would be organised.

Moves are also being made to think beyond 2030, with NESO consulting on the methodologies for a ‘Strategic Spatial Energy Plan’ (a concept we first introduced in the Electricity Networks Commissioner report) and for the Centralised Strategic Network Plan of the electricity grid.

These processes are not without risk, but clarity on how they would be delivered is welcome.

Here’s my wish for 2025: let’s match our obsession with tech in the Net Zero transition with an obsession for the people it’s meant to serve.