UK businesses face delays of up to 15 years for solar installations

Helena Horton
Fri, 5 May 2023 


Businesses in the UK are facing waits of up to 15 years for solar installations on their homes due to a lack of grid connectivity, MPs have found.

The environmental audit committee, which looks at green policies in government, has said there is a “dark cloud of delays” hindering the country from reaching its potential when it comes to renewable energy.

An inquiry by the MPs into solar energy has found that the government’s ambition to install 70GW of solar by 2035 may not happen if these delays continue. It found that in some cases, customers were having to wait 10 to 15 years to secure a connection for solar installations.

MPs said there were three key areas where the current approach on grid connection was delaying progress: a lack of physical infrastructure such as cables and transformers; poor availability of data on solar photovoltaic generation, particularly for small-scale installations; and a “queueing system” of applications where developers are applying for grid connections without the project having planning permission.

Though the committee said solar energy did not need subsidies due to how cheap it was to generate, it did find that the costs of installation could be prohibitive.

MPs recommended the government should consider consulting on how it could facilitate affordable loans for households, and to give a VAT discount to household battery storage.

The committee is launching another inquiry into the lack of connectivity in the UK, looking at barriers hindering low-carbon technologies from connecting to the grid. It will also consider the potential for a smarter and more flexible grid that enables dynamic demand management and peer-to-peer electricity trading and storing.

The chair of the committee, Philip Dunne, said the delays could stop the UK from reaching net zero emissions by 2050.

He said: “There is potential for solar energy to have a bright future in the UK, but a dark cloud of delays for the industry hinders the ability to meet its full potential. Evidence to our committee made clear that the UK has the potential to fulfil the UK’s ambition of 70GW of generating capacity from solar. But sticking points for households around access to finance and VAT being slapped on batteries remain.

“The ability for low-carbon energy sources, including solar, to be able to connect to the grid could seriously jeopardise net zero Britain. Our solar inquiry found that some developers wait up to 15 years for a grid connection: this simply isn’t good enough. We must make sure that concerns around infrastructure and planning are addressed swiftly.

“Given our committee’s mounting concerns over grid connections for low-carbon energy projects, we are today launching a new inquiry that will consider this in greater detail. I encourage anyone with views on these issues to submit evidence.”