Britain’s drive towards a clean electricity system by 2030 could face a growing challenge over where new renewable energy projects are built, as pressure on the electricity grid intensifies.
Energy consultancy Caeli is warning that better decisions about the location of onshore wind farms could help reduce future electricity constraint costs, which are forecast to rise sharply in the coming years.
Constraint payments occur when electricity generated by wind farms cannot be transported to where it is needed because of limitations in the grid network. Operators can be paid to reduce their output, while other power stations generate electricity closer to areas of demand.
The costs of those interventions are ultimately passed on to consumers.
Caeli says annual constraint costs could reach between £8 billion and £10 billion by 2030 if network bottlenecks are not addressed.
The company argues that expanding grid infrastructure remains essential, but that the location of new renewable projects should also be considered as part of the solution.
Its digital planning platform allows developers, landowners and investors to assess potential wind farm sites using multiple datasets. These include wind resources, environmental constraints, planning considerations, grid availability and network capacity.
The aim is to identify locations where projects could have a greater chance of securing efficient grid connections while limiting their contribution to future network congestion.
“Every wind turbine built in the right location delivers another step towards the Net Zero goals,” said Hans-Georg von Lewinski, head of international development at Caeli.
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He said site selection had traditionally concentrated on factors such as wind resources and land availability, with grid constraints sometimes considered much later in the development process.
“If developers can understand those constraints from the outset, they can make better investment decisions, reduce project risk and help build a more efficient electricity system,” Mr von Lewinski said.
The approach comes as Britain prepares for significant investment in its transmission network and wider reforms by the National Energy System Operator (NESO) aimed at improving the grid connections process and reducing balancing costs.
The government is also accelerating the rollout of onshore wind as part of efforts to increase renewable electricity generation.
Caeli believes digital planning tools could become increasingly important as developers seek sites that are not only commercially viable but also better suited to the capacity and needs of the electricity network.
“Building more renewable energy is essential, but where we build it matters just as much,” Mr von Lewinski said.
“Smarter site selection today can help reduce future constraint costs, make better use of the grid and deliver greater value for developers, consumers and the wider energy system.”
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