STA calls on National Grid to update UK solar projections

Jul 15, 2014 - The UK Solar Trade Association (STA) said on Friday it had asked National Grid Plc (LON:NG) to revise upwards its estimates for solar power installations in coming decades as the current ones fail to reflect reality.

A day earlier, the electric and gas utility presented four scenarios for the UK’s renewables future. According to National Grid’s most optimistic forecast, called the Gone Green scenario, there will be just 7.5 GW of operational solar photovoltaic (PV) parks in the UK by 2020. Based on the Low Carbon Life scenario, the figure will amount to 8.5 GW.

The STA pointed out that even the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) forecasts 12 GW of operational solar PV capacity by that time. Meanwhile, Britain is aiming to reach 20 GW of installed solar capacity by the end of the decade.

The association is also challenging the National Grid’s estimates for 2.3 GW of solar PV in place today.

STA’s CEO Paul Barwell expressed his frustration with the way both the government and National Grid make important decisions based on out of date data. “We forecast that solar will become cheap enough to compete without public subsidy by the end of the decade, but only if it has a stable policy framework. Using accurate data is an essential part of that,” he added.

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