All you need to understand the UK renewable energy market

1. Renewable energy explained
No doubtyou’ve heardalotabout renewable energy,whetherit’sinformationaboutgenerating
your ownenergyathome or about buyingrenewable electricityfromyoursupplier.Butwithall the
newtechnologyandconfusing terminologyaround,itcanbe hard to know exactlywhateveryoneis
talkingabout.Here’swhatyouneedtoknow about renewableenergyintoday’smodernlifestyle,
and howyoucan easily‘doyourbit’tokeepour planethealthy.
What is renewable energy?
Since the industrial revolution,Britainhasbeenapowerhungrynation.Demandforfuelstopower
our homes,vehiclesandbusinesseshasincreasedexponentially,andthe mostreadilyavailable
source to meetall our energyneedshascome fromdeepunderthe earth.
Fossil fuelslike oil,gasandcoal were formedovermillionsof yearsasdeadorganismsdecomposed
and turnedintoa carbon richsludge.Manyof the fossil fuelswe are burningtodaywill have taken
more than 650 millionyearstoform,andare a finite resource whichwill,eventually,runout.They
are clearlynoteasilyreplaced;therefore,we know these fuel typestobe ‘non-renewable’.
Aside of the potential forfossilfuelstobecome obsolete inthe future,thereisalsothe problemof
whathappenswhenwe burnthese forheator to produce electricity.Fossil fuelsemitanumberof
harmful gassesintothe environment,the mostprolificof whichiscarbondioxide(CO2).CO2has
beencitedasbeinga majorcause of global climate change,andhas spurrednationsall overthe
worldon toreduce the amount of CO2 theyare responsible forreleasing.
Renewableenergymightseemlikeaverymodernconcept,butactuallythe ideahasbeenaroundfor
centuries.Atthe ancientsite of BeechesPitinSuffolk,whichdatesasfar backas 415,000 BC, there is
evidence of the use of woodfiresbythe inhabitants,whichwe wouldnow refertoas ‘biofuels’.
Waterwheelswere usedbythe Romansfromthe secondcenturyAD,and inthe middle ageswe
oftenusedwindmills,althoughthe firstelectricitygeneratingmodelwasnotintroduceduntil 1887
(1).
In orderto lowercarbonemissions,countriesmustlooktoalternative sourcesof energy.Aswe
knowfromour ancestors,itis possible toharnessthe energyall aroundus,inthe formof wind,
sunlight,watercurrentsandmore.Asrenewable energyhasbecome amore pressingneed,an
entire industryhasgrownupto provide technologythatcan helpusmeetourenergyneedsina
more sustainable,cleanerway.
Today we see renewable energyinmanyshapesandformsall overthe country.From sprawling
solarfarms andtoweringwindturbinestoneighboursinstallingsolarwaterheating,renewable
energyisfastbecominganacceptedand desirable investmentbothforbigbusinessesandsmall
homeowners.
In a nutshell,renewable energyisenergywhichwillnotrunout.It may fluctuate,withthe seasons
and the environmentaroundus,butbecause we are no longerusingafinite resource likethe fossil
fuels,itisa sustainable,renewablealternative.
Why is the UK so interested in renewable energy?
Increasingrenewable energyuse hasadouble benefit.Byturningtoa more sustainable source of
energy,we are not onlyable toimprove the environmentand planethealthforthe future,butalso
to improve ourownenergysecurity,andensure the UKhas enoughpowerforgenerationstocome.

2. As such,the UK governmenthassigneduptoa numberof agreements andtargetswhichdictate
howmuch actionis takenon renewable energy.
 The EU has seta targetfor the UK to meetatleast15 per centof itsenergyneedsfrom
renewable sourcesby2020.
 Alongside that,the UKistargetedto provide 10 percent of transport energyfrom
renewable sourcesalsoby2020 (2).
 The Climate Change Acttargetsthe UK to reduce carbonemissionsbyatleast80 percent
from1990 levelsbythe year2050 (3).
These targetsare beingdrivenforwardbyanumberof actions,includingincentives like the
RenewableHeatIncentive(RHI) (4) aswell asplanningdocumentssuchasthe UK Renewable Energy
Roadmap(4).
The latestreportsshowthat all thisactionis certainlyhaving aneffect,asgasuse in the UK fell by
more than a fifthbetween2005 and2012 thanks toboth energyefficiencyandrenewable energy
uptake (6).In 2013, around 15 percent of the UK’selectricitygenerationcame fromrenewable
sources,puttingusabouthalf way towardsour targetsfor2020 (7).
What can you do?
If you ownyour home,renewable energytechnologyisbecomingawise investmentif youhave
some capital to spare.Some of the most widely acceptedtechnologiesathome include:
 Solar water heating: The cheapestrenewable technologyandsimple toinstall
 Solar PV: Panelsonyourroof produce electricityfromsunlight
 Heat pumps: Unitsof heatcan be extractedfromthe ground,froma watersource like a
lake,or evenfromthe airaround usand usedto heatyour home
 Biomass: Fromsimple woodburningstovestomore complex biomassboilers
 Hydro power:An optionforthose luckyenoughtohave a streamor rivernear theirhome
For manyof these typesof technologies,youcanreceive helpfromthe governmentwiththe costof
installation,orcan applyfora renewable energytariff suchasthe FeedinTariff or RenewableHeat
Incentive,whichwill seeyougettingpaidforeveryunitof energyyour systemproduces.
If you are unable toinstall yourownrenewable energytechnology,maybebecause yourentyour
home or simplydon’thave the cashto invest,youcanstill make a difference bysupporting
commercial renewable energydevelopment.Manyelectricitysuppliersinthe UKnow offera ‘green’
or renewable tariff,whichisaworkable wayof gettinginvolvedinthe renewable movement.
That doesn’tmeanyou’ll be connecteddirectlytoa windturbine though.Of course,yourelectricity
will still come downthe same powerlinesandwill essentially be the same electricitythatyournon-
greentariff neighbourgets.Whatitdoesmean,however,isthatmore of your bill will be going
towardsthe developmentof newsustainableenergysourcesinthe UK.
Althoughthe ‘BigSix’doinvestquite heavilyinrenewableenergy,if you’re seriousaboutmakinga
difference inthe UK,thenthere isone clearwinner. Ecotricity,basedinGloucestershire,currently
investaround£281 per customerinbuildingnew sourcesof renewables,comparedto£7.50 from
BritishGas, £13 from E.Onand £35.80 fromnpower(8).
There isa chance that you’ll enduppayingslightlymore foranelectricitytariff fromEcotricity,and
because theydon’thave anythingtodowithgas, you’ll lose outonanyduel fuel discountyou’re
currentlygettingfromyoursupplier (9).However,the difference isamatterof a few pounds,and

3. theygetamazingcustomersatisfactionresultstoo (9),soif you’re keentogogreenerbutwithout
spendingabomb,itcouldbe worthgettingholdof a quote to switch.
References
1. [Online]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renewable_energy_in_the_United_Kingdom.
2. [Online]https://fullfact.org/economy/uks-renewable-energy-target/.
3. [Online]https://www.theccc.org.uk/tackling-climate-change/reducing-carbon-
emissions/carbon-budgets-and-targets/.
4. [Online]https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-programmes/domestic-renewable-heat-
incentive.
5. [Online]
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/48128/2167-
uk-renewable-energy-roadmap.pdf.
6. [Online]
http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/tgm/table.do?tab=table&init=1&language=en&pcode=tsdcc320&pl
ugin=1.
7. [Online]http://visual.ons.gov.uk/uk-perspectives-energy-and-emissions/.
8. [Online]http://shrinkthatfootprint.com/green-electrical-supply-uk-big-6.
9. [Online]http://www.energyhelpline.com/thisismoney_householdbills.
10. [Online]http://switch.which.co.uk/energy-suppliers/energy-companies-rated.html.