Response to the UK government unveiling measures to accelerate the rollout of clean power

The UK government has today announced measures to accelerate the rollout of clean power.

Guy Newey, CEO of Energy Systems Catapult, said:

“We know from working day-to-day with the UK’s most exciting innovators that they are poised to take advantage of the unparalleled economic opportunities that a rapid switch to a clean, flexible energy system offers, delivering real benefits for households and businesses.

“This set of measures – on opening up public land for clean energy infrastructure, streamlining planning rules, and opening up access to new technologies – will provide a timely boost to their ambition, and drive new markets for their clean energy products and services. The UK has the potential to lead the world in flexible, distributed energy and these measures, which are in many cases backed by evidence from research the Catapult has supported, are essential steps.”

Tom Luff, Head of Policy and Business Model Innovation at Energy Systems Catapult, said:

“We welcome the strengthened focus on the demand side: making it easier for people to adopt heat pumps, electric vehicles and innovations such as plug-in solar is essential if clean power is to translate into lower bills and greater resilience.

“Many of the measures announced reflect evidence and analysis that Energy Systems Catapult has supported recently:

• Unlocking public sector land for clean energy aligns closely with our work supporting the public sector to take a leadership role and speed up deployment of solar, wind and storage.
• The inclusion of railway land for renewable power builds on our collaboration with Riding Sunbeams, which showed how solar can be integrated cost‑effectively into national transport infrastructure.
• Reforms to land access and planning rules strongly reflect findings from the Electricity Networks Commissioner project, which highlighted how outdated and bureaucratic processes are delaying essential grid upgrades, pushing up costs and slowing the delivery of clean power. Measures such as enabling early surveys and simplifying routine planning routes are critical steps to unblock the grid.
• The expanded Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant and permitted development reforms for heat pumps align with our work on heat technologies, which has consistently shown that reducing upfront cost and installation friction are among the most effective levers for accelerating heat pump adoption – particularly in rural properties and homes that are harder to upgrade.

“However, reforms to electricity pricing must establish a fit‑for‑purpose market framework for a high‑renewables system. Voluntary long‑term contracts will only benefit consumers if they deliver genuine value for money and retain meaningful price signals for flexibility, storage and smart demand.

“While the Reformed National Pricing Delivery Plan includes sensible measures – such as Dynamic Line Rating and better use of surplus power in constrained areas – these are incremental and stop short of providing the locational signals increasingly required. Without them, there is a real risk that pricing interventions weaken incentives, slow innovation and increase long‑term system costs rather than reducing them.”

In February, Energy Systems Catapult published research showing how energy flexibility could help the UK save billions in infrastructure costs – while giving homegrown innovators a platform to scale up and compete globally. You can read the report here.