01 / Introduction

The net zero transition is one of the world’s greatest shared challenges. The UK’s energy transition tipping point may still not be crossed until the late 2020s. Despite having made great early progress through the establishment of statutory net zero carbon targets and the phasing out of coal, the UK is still in the foothills of energy transition.

For example, fewer than 2% of UK homes have low carbon heating and around 120 gas boilers are fitted for every low carbon system installed. Inevitably, as more homes install photovoltaics and battery storage, and as more of the UK’s 40 million vehicles use electricity as their power source, systems will become more complex and demand on networks will grow. With 2050 only 28 years away, the full scale of the change required is still difficult to comprehend.

The challenge of scale is neatly illustrated by projections of the volumes of investment needed. The 2021 Arcadis report Supercharging Net Zero estimated that total global investment required by 2030 for generating capacity and networks to meet the 1.5ºC scenario is £7.4tn – equivalent to 10% of annual global GDP.

Furthermore, as the transition accelerates, the effort required to eliminate carbon will increase and systems will become more complex and costly. A good example is the completely new green hydrogen infrastructure that will be needed from the 2030s onwards to store energy generated by the UK’s vast wind power resources.

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