{"id":10728,"date":"2025-01-15T15:51:56","date_gmt":"2025-01-15T15:51:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/solarenergyuk.org\/?post_type=news&p=10728"},"modified":"2025-03-25T01:07:30","modified_gmt":"2025-03-25T01:07:30","slug":"warm-welcome-for-plans-to-slash-solar-red-tape","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/solarenergyuk.org\/news\/warm-welcome-for-plans-to-slash-solar-red-tape\/","title":{"rendered":"Warm welcome for plans to slash solar red tape"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Solar Energy UK<\/strong>
<\/strong>15 January 2025\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Delivering large-scale rooftop solar energy projects should soon be cheaper and quicker, under plans announced today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The state-owned National Energy System Operator (NESO) intends to remove a burdensome element of red tape that has added many years to getting projects off the ground. This has been an economic burden on businesses across the country, keeping them dependent on pricey power from the grid. It has also held back the community energy sector and diminished the pace of decarbonisation, contrary to Government objectives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As things stand, projects intended to connect to the lower-voltage distribution grid that are over one megawatt in capacity must have their potential impact on the higher-voltage distribution grid considered. The cost of these transmission impact assessments (TIAs) has effectively blocked larger local power projects, or has added years of delays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Solar Energy UK is happy to see that NESO has proposed to shift the threshold up to 5MW via an urgent code modification.[1] The move, earlier than had been expected, should contribute to the \u201csolar rooftop revolution\u201d sought by Energy Secretary Ed Miliband.[2] We look forward to hearing further details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The benefits will only flow to England and Wales, due to the way that Scotland\u2019s grid is configured. Northern Ireland\u2019s grid is part of a separate all-Ireland system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, a comparable but less radical change has already been implemented in Scotland. Last summer, Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) raised the threshold for TIAs from only 50 kilowatts \u2013 about twelve times the size of a typical domestic installation \u2013 to a more substantial 200kW. Doing so significantly expedited 35 projects in central and northern Scotland, their capacity coming to 5.2MW. It brought SSEN in line with procedures in the rest of Scotland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cReducing barriers for renewable energy is always a welcome move, so we are delighted to see NESO\u2019s announcement today, which has come somewhat earlier than we had anticipated. Slashing the red tape for larger-scale rooftop projects, and potentially for small-scale groundmount systems, will be a real economic boon,\u201d said Chris Hewett, Chief Executive of Solar Energy UK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The announcement should greatly accelerate the deployment of photovoltaics on warehouses in particular. Two years ago, the UK Warehousing Association, working in conjunction with Solar Energy UK, estimated that the sector could install 15GW if grid challenges were resolved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Separately, NESO has confirmed expected plans to pause applications for grid connections from the end of this month, as it prepares to roll out reforms intended to speed up the most viable and advanced projects.[3] \u201cThis arrangement will enable resources to be dedicated to delivery of connections reforms at pace across 2025,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amending the TIA regime now means that hundreds of projects will not be affected by the need to document land rights \u2013 so-called \u2018gate 2\u2019 compliance \u2013 or alignment with the details of the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe solar industry has long called for fundamental reform to the grid connection process and we await NESO\u2019s plans for delivery. Meanwhile, the sector is ready and prepared for further expansion, delivering cleaner, greener, cheaper and more secure power,\u201d said Hewett.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[1] CMP446: Increasing the lower threshold in England and Wales for Evaluation of Transmission Impact Assessment (TIA)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

[2] Sector backs Miliband\u2019s \u2018solar revolution\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

[3] Next steps in grid connections reform<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n


\u2013 ENDS \u2013<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Editor\u2019s notes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more information or to request an interview, please contact:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gareth Simkins, Senior Communications Adviser<\/p>\n\n\n\n

gsimkins@solarenergyuk.org<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

news@solarenergyuk.org<\/a> | solarenergyuk.org<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Solar Energy UK15 January 2025\u00a0 Delivering large-scale rooftop solar energy projects should soon be cheaper and quicker, under plans announced today. The state-owned National Energy System Operator (NESO) intends to remove a burdensome element of red tape that has added many years to getting projects off the ground. This has been an economic burden on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":8439,"template":"","custom_tag":[],"class_list":["post-10728","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWarm welcome for plans to slash solar red tape • Solar Energy UK<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Delivering large-scale rooftop solar energy projects should soon be cheaper and quicker, under plans announced today\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/solarenergyuk.org\/news\/warm-welcome-for-plans-to-slash-solar-red-tape\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Warm welcome for plans to slash solar red tape\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Large-scale rooftop solar projects 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