Accumulated installed capacity of 4.2GW! Rapid growth in photovoltaic installation in the UK
Research firm NTT DATA conducted an analysis based on statistical data released by the UK government. The analysis shows that in 2022, locally produced and sold photovoltaic systems currently account for 27% of the total installed capacity of photovoltaic systems installed in the UK, with a cumulative capacity of 4.2GW.
The high energy prices in Europe have led to the fastest growth in the installed capacity of small photovoltaic systems (<10kW) installed in the UK since 2016, but some people are concerned that the grid lacks the capacity to accommodate this growing generation.
NTT DATA stated that locally produced photovoltaic products account for over a quarter of the installed capacity of photovoltaic systems installed in the UK.
2022 is the year with the highest rejection rate of photovoltaic systems in five years, which may lead to insufficient investment in the UK photovoltaic industry. NTT DATA stated, "These data may reflect the lack of tax incentives for renewable energy investment compared to oil and gas.
The smart export guaranteed electricity price for UK photovoltaic developers exporting to the grid is relatively low (with a price of 4.9p/kWh 13% higher than the current wholesale price of 37.2p/kWh), which means that photovoltaic system owners can use battery energy storage systems to store excess energy instead of selling it to the grid.
Accumulated installation of small photovoltaic systems in the UK from 2010 to 2023
However, some industry organizations have stated that the UK government's statistical data on the installed capacity of domestically installed photovoltaic systems is not accurate. The Solar Energy UK stated, "As is well known, the data collected by the UK government has serious flaws and does not reflect the true situation of installed photovoltaic systems. We hope to improve its statistical methods through cooperation with the photovoltaic working group
Therefore, although the installed capacity of photovoltaic systems installed in the UK is definitely increasing, if the statistical data does not include commercial rooftop photovoltaic systems or other types of photovoltaic systems, it may only account for less than 73% of new deployments.
Meanwhile, a research report released by Cornwall Insight recently stated that by the end of 2030, electricity prices in the UK will remain at high levels after 2022, making increasing the scale of public utility photovoltaic systems more important for meeting UK energy demand and achieving energy security in the face of global price shocks.
