A new study released by Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) has revealed that renewable energy is expected to account for more than half of electricity generation by the mid-2020s across the UK and Germany.
This development is due to the reducing cost of wind and solar generation.
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Entitled ‘Beyond the tipping point: flexibility gaps in future high-renewable energy systems in the UK, Germany, and the Nordics’, the study was commissioned by Eaton in partnership with the Renewable Energy Association (REA).
BNEF global analysis head Albert Cheung said: “This study highlights a seismic shift in how power systems will operate in the future.
“As wind and solar become the cheapest options for power generation, the race is on to develop and deploy the flexible resources that will complement them.”
The BNEF study also noted that wind and solar energy alone could occasionally meet or exceed the total power demand in both countries. By 2030, it is expected that there will be whole weeks when wind and solar power generation will surpass total demand every day.
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By GlobalDataHowever, growth in wind and solar is also expected to result in more variable demand for other energy sources to fill power supply gaps, meaning a set of flexible energy storage technologies will be required.
In addition, generation waste is expected to rise to 3% in the UK and 16% in Germany by 2040.
