IEA policy review highlights UK leadership on climate policy and emission reduction efforts

The IEA regularly conducts reviews of the energy and related climate policies of its member countries and provides recommendations – a process that supports energy policy development and encourages the exchange of international best practices and experiences. This latest review of the United Kingdom, based on work conducted during its previous government, finds that it has made significant progress to-date on emissions reductions. This is underpinned by a robust climate framework as one of the first advanced economies to legally adopt a net zero target, according to the IEA’s latest review of the United Kingdom’s energy policies.

The United Kingdom 2024: Energy Policy Review highlights how the country is a leader in clean energy deployment, particularly in offshore wind. This is in part thanks to strong climate policies, notably carbon pricing and the creation of an independent body, the Climate Change Committee, with statutory authority to track the government’s progress toward its climate targets. As part of this, the United Kingdom has met all of its five-year ‘carbon budgets’ so far, a set of interim emissions reduction goals that serve as stepping stones to the 2050 net zero target.

The transformation of the UK’s electricity system, driven by a rapid decline in coal-fired generation and a strong expansion of renewable electricity, has demonstrated the country’s commitment to transforming its energy system, the report finds. However, the report also notes that the United Kingdom is still heavily reliant on fossil fuels, which continue to play a major role in electricity generation as well as in the buildings, transport and industrial sectors. To achieve its climate targets and stay on track with its carbon budgets, greater progress on reducing emissions will be required in these end-use sectors, in particular.

The United Kingdom has set an ambitious target to decarbonise electricity generation, underpinned by rapid growth in wind, solar and nuclear power. Renewables already account for over a fifth of the country’s electricity generation, a three-fold increase since 2012. The report highlights that the UK’s auction scheme to support renewable energy deployment – known as Contracts for Difference – has been a notable success story. In the coming years, the United Kingdom will need to ensure the continued buildout of low-emissions generation to displace unabated gas, replace closures in the nuclear fleet and keep up with growing power demand driven by electrification. It will likewise need to support a massive buildout of electricity infrastructure, reduce administrative barriers and speed up grid connections to enable new projects to come online.  

In other sectors, the UK’s building stock, among the oldest in Europe, contributes over a quarter of the country’s energy-related emissions. In its recommendations, the report emphasises the need for a sustained focus on energy efficiency upgrades of existing buildings and a rapid turnover of fossil fuel heating systems toward electricity-based heat pumps as priority areas.

Transport is the largest emitting sector in the United Kingdom and is heavily reliant on oil. The United Kingdom has ambitious plans for zero emissions vehicles and the report encourages a sustained focus on implementation.

The UK’s industrial sector is also a major energy consumer and a key contributor to emissions, accounting for around a fifth of UK energy consumption and 14% of emissions. In addition to supporting energy efficiency, the report urges the United Kingdom to undertake efforts to support electrification in industry, enabled by grid expansion and connections to industrial sites. Commercialisation and adoption of new technologies, including carbon capture, utilisation and storage as well as fuels such as hydrogen, can also play an important role in industrial decarbonisation.

Overall, the report finds that the United Kingdom is making strong progress on its energy transition, with both opportunities to accelerate still further and to seize the benefits of the growing global clean energy economy, thanks to its first-mover advantage and robust legal frameworks. The country must continue its shift from action plans toward rapid implementation that accelerates results and supports meeting climate targets.