Total use of renewable and waste energy sources in the UK - Data and Analysis (2000-2033)

Over the five-year period through 2026, the total annual use of renewable and waste energy sources in the United Kingdom is forecast to expand at a compound annual rate of 8.1%, to reach 34,816.3 ttoe. Growth in the use of renewable sources is primarily influenced by the amount of capacity on the supply side economy and regulations and the price of renewables relative to non-renewable alternatives on the demand side economy. Renewable energy capacity has grown significantly since the turn of the millennium and investment in new capacity has increased overall. Adoption of renewable low-carbon electricity technologies by households has increased as a result of the introduction of feed-in tariffs, which provided financial support for small-scale installations. In general, the price of energy provided by renewables is higher than non-renewable energy sources, due to the relatively high initial cost of new technology to providers. However, renewables became relatively more affordable when oil and natural prices were high and taxes on emissions helped to raise the price of non-renewables. Despite the fall in oil prices over 2014-2016 and 2019-20, there was little discernible impact on renewable energy with wind and solar power being reasonably competitively priced. Oil prices collapsed further in April 2020, due to the (COVID-19) coronavirus pandemic which decimated demand for several weeks, despite this, there was limited effects on renewable energy.However, gas and electricity market prices have steadily been rising since 2021, compounded by the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and the scalating tensions in the Middle East in 2026. The market price for natural gas have reached a record high of 599.5 pence per therm in August 2022, up from just 42.50 pence per therm at the start of 2021. This begun to push small gas suppliers out of the energy market as margins are squeezed. As a result, it is estimated that the number of enterprises is estimated to fall over 2021-22, as smaller energy suppliers no longer remain profitable. For example, Bulb Energy had to be bailed out by the government in November 2021 following it entering administration due to rising gas and electricity prices. The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) was forced to increase coal plant capacity to meet 5% of the power demand across the UK. Moreover, in November 2022, Ofgem raised the energy price cap by 12% to £ £4,279. This price rise is expected to intensify the shift to renewable energy as oil prices rise and demand for more affordable electricity and gas increases.Types of renewable sources used to generate electricity and heat in the United Kingdom include onshore and offshore wind, wave and tidal, hydropower, solar heating and photovoltaics, deep geothermal; heat pumps, bioenergy and wastes. Bioenergy is further split into landfill gas, sewage gas, domestic and industrial wood, plant and animal biomass and anaerobic digestion. Sources of energy from waste are the result of the combustion of tyres, hospital waste and general industrial waste. The UK's largest sources of renewable energy are bioenergy, onshore and offshore wind and wastes. Both bioenergy and wind power have grown strongly over the period, while hydropower provides a highly volatile output. Waste sources also account for a notable share of the total and have increased steadily throughout the period, as businesses have been pressured to utilise waste products. For example, waste and water industrial producers generate a large proportion of electricity from waste products.