REA’s REView 25 Report Published

This is the annual report from the Renewable Energy Association (REA) and one of the UK’s most authoritative assessments of the renewable energy and clean technology sector, this report provides a clear picture of the progress being made in the energy transition, this report covering the most recent full year’s data available (2024, except for certain international comparisons) and looking ahead to 2035 and beyond. For the first time, this edition combines an International comparison to the UK’s progress.

Since the last report, the energy policy and regulatory landscape has shifted – with increasing pressure on Net Zero from different political parties and while the Government has made some progress on Clean Power 2030, grid infrastructure, planning, Simpler Recycling and established GB Energy, many tricky areas remain, not least decarbonising the heat and transport sectors.

The UK’s growth in certain areas is again evident from the latest statistics set out here. It was a breakthrough year for power, with renewables providing over half (50.8%) of the UK’s electricity for the first time, while 9.4% of heat, and 6.2% of transport demand came from renewables, the latter two sectors remaining persistently difficult to decarbonise. In terms of the circular bioresources sector, composting sites across the UK produced over 1.96 million tonnes per annum (tpa) of certified compost and the 105 Biofertiliser Certification Scheme (BCS),certified biofertiliser production sites produced 5 million tpa of biofertiliser.

The total market value of the sector reached £25.54 billion in 2023/24, marking a considerable 4.8% increase from the previous year. Employment in the sector also rose, reaching 145,281 Full Time Equivalents (FTEs), an increase from 142,760 FTEs the previous year and the first time the sector exceeded the 145,000 level.

Our modelling shows that the right investment environment for our sector could mean up to 265,317 full-time jobs in the sector in the UK by 2035 and over 300,000 by 2050 while the market value of the sector could more than double to around £54bn by 2035.

For international comparison, renewables were the largest single source of international Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) across the globe – and the UK was ranked as the second highest in the world for attracting FDI in the sector ([2]).    In terms of international jobs comparisons – while information is not available for the whole sector, we are currently behind other European countries in per capita jobs in certain renewables. In – AD, hydro, solar and wind sub sectors combined, the UK has 0.11 renewables jobs per capita compared to 0.19 on average in the EU and 0.26 in Germany and Denmark due to higher deployment and supply chain manufacturing. This illustrates how greater deployment and supply chain capability could allow us to catch up and reap even further economic benefits.

Read the full report for further insights.

LINK TO  REPORT: REA_REview25_final

Contact – Media enquiries – [email protected]  / [email protected]