Our net zero targets are set, and the clock is ticking
We must arrive at our net zero destination as fast as possible, but the journey won’t be easy and will require much effort and investment.
Ambitious targets have been set for all countries worldwide to reach net zero. The UK’s target is net zero by 2050; in Scotland, the target is net zero by 2045. And to ensure we make progress in the interim, aggressive targets have been set for 2030.
These targets present an enormous challenge because we need to replumb, rewire, and reposition the nation's energy system.
Increasing wind generation
A considerable amount of low-carbon electricity will come from offshore wind, and we need to increase our wind generation by five times what we currently produce.
To meet this increase, we must install over 3000 wind turbines between now and 2030, which means installing more than one wind turbine every day for the next eight years.
Dealing with carbon emissions
We know we need to decarbonise our transport system, heating system, and industrial processes, but we must also deal with our current carbon emissions.
In the UK, ambitious targets have been set to store up to 30 million tonnes per year of CO2 in underground reservoirs.
To meet this target, we must develop clusters across the UK, and carbon must be captured, processed, transported, and stored safely.
Kick-starting the hydrogen economy
It’s not just our systems that need to change - we all need to change our behaviour as consumers.
Twenty-three million UK households currently use oil or gas for heating - we must replace these fossil fuels with lower carbon alternatives.
By 2025, gas boilers will be banned from newly built houses, and the UK will phase out all gas boiler installations by 2035.
And we need to install heat pumps—which transfer heat from the ground, air, or water around a property into its heating system—at a rate of 600,000 yearly by 2028.
Decarbonising our transport system
We must decarbonise the 39 million vehicles on UK roads by switching to electric alternatives or using different fuelling methods.
New hybrid vehicles can be sold until 2035, providing they can cover a "significant distance" in zero-emission mode. But all new conventional petrol and diesel cars and vans will be banned from sale in 2030.
The net zero challenge is great, but so are the opportunities
Our aim is that most of the UK electricity power generation will come from renewable sources by 2030, and all the UK's electricity will come from clean sources by 2035.
To meet our net zero targets, we need a significant shift in what we must do over the next couple of years. We must industrialise energy generation capacity in the UK at a level we have never previously seen.
Changing our energy system and how we use energy is one of the most significant challenges we face on the road to net zero—but this change also brings great opportunity.
Key points
- We must get to net zero as soon as possible, but the challenge to replumb, rewire, and reposition the nation is great.
- The UK government’s target is net zero by 2050 or earlier; in Scotland, the target is net zero by 2045 or earlier.
- To ensure progress is made in the interim, aggressive targets have been set for 2030.
- Ambitions were clearly outlined in the British Energy Security Strategy, published in April 2022.
Our energy transition targets
- Installing more than 3000 wind turbines to increase wind generation from 11GW (in 2022) to 50 GW by 2030.
- Generating 10 GW from hydrogen by 2030 from a combination of different hydrogen generation technologies (green hydrogen will likely emerge as the preferred choice).
- Decreasing oil and gas from 2.6 mmboe/d consumption in 2022 to 1.6 mmboe/d by 2030.
- Banning gas boilers from newly built houses by 2025, and phase out all installations by 2035.
- Storing up to 30 million tonnes per year of CO2 in underground reservoirs.
- Installing heat pumps at a rate of 600,000 yearly by 2028.
- Banning all new conventional petrol and diesel cars and vans from sale in 2030.
- Ensuring all the UK's electricity comes from clean sources by 2035.