Electricity Grid Needs £58 Billion for Net Zero: Report

An additional £58 billion will need to be invested in Britain’s electricity grid by 2035 to keep up with demand as the country attempts to meet net zero commitments, a report has said.

On Tuesday, the Electricity Systems Operator (ESO) called for “swift and coordinated” progress on investing in offshore and onshore network upgrades, as households and businesses switch to using electricity for heating and powering vehicles.

The ESO said the investment would facilitate the connection of an extra 21 gigawatts of offshore wind as well as other forms of “low carbon generation” across Britain. The operator said that by 2035, three times as much undersea cabling will be laid than onshore infrastructure.

Britain’s electricity needs are set to rise “substantially” by 2035—by 64 percent—as “our everyday lives become more digitally intertwined and we move towards more electrified heat and transport options.” This is coupled with the government’s plans to have a fully decarbonised electricity system by the middle of the next decade.

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