In short
Clean Power 2030 is the government's aim for clean sources to produce almost all of Great Britain's electricity by 2030, with gas used only as backup. Meeting it needs a big increase in wind, solar and storage, plus the networks to connect them. To decide what goes where, the country is moving from a market-led, project-by-project approach to central planning, led by NESO, at national and regional level.
The Clean Power 2030 mission
In 2024 the government asked NESO for advice on how to reach clean power by 2030. NESO found it was achievable but challenging, and depended on faster connections and network build. The government's Clean Power 2030 Action Plan, published in December 2024, set out:
- capacity ranges for each technology, including offshore wind, onshore wind, solar, and batteries and other storage;
- reform of the connections queue, so projects needed for 2030 are prioritised;
- changes to planning, to speed up consent for generation and networks;
- support for supply chains and skills.
The target is defined as clean sources providing at least 95% of GB electricity generation in a typical weather year, and the whole of demand on an annual basis.
What it means for the networks
The mission puts networks on the critical path:
- The Action Plan's capacity ranges were used directly in connections reform, to decide which projects get firm dates at Gate 2.
- Transmission projects needed for 2030, many funded under ASTI, have to be delivered on time. See building the transmission network.
- Distribution networks need to connect large amounts of solar, batteries and new demand, making more use of flexibility.
The new strategic plans
NESO was given new planning roles when it was set up in October 2024. Three plans fit together:
Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP)
A national plan, commissioned by the government, setting out the generation and storage Great Britain needs and broadly where it should be located, looking ahead to the 2050s. It covers electricity and hydrogen, and onshore and offshore. Future rounds of connections reform are expected to use it in place of the Clean Power 2030 ranges.
Centralised Strategic Network Plan (CSNP)
A plan for the transmission network needed to deliver the SSEP. It replaces the earlier annual Network Options Assessment and Holistic Network Design, and recommends which projects transmission owners should take forward.
Regional Energy Strategic Plans (RESPs)
Plans for each of a set of regions across Great Britain, working with local authorities, the devolved governments and DNOs. They set out how demand, local generation and distribution networks are expected to develop, and will feed into DNO business plans for RIIO-ED3.
Great British Energy
Great British Energy is a publicly owned energy company, set up by the Great British Energy Act 2025. It invests in clean energy projects, including local and community energy, rooftop solar on public buildings and supply chains, often alongside private investors. It doesn't own the transmission or distribution networks. Follow Great British Energy.
Debates to follow
- Pace: whether connections, consents and supply chains can move fast enough for 2030.
- Cost: the effect of network build and constraint costs on bills.
- Markets: having kept a single national wholesale price in 2025, how reforms such as changes to TNUoS will give locational signals.
- Planning versus markets: how much the SSEP should direct where projects go, and how far it is left to developers.
- Demand: how to plan for new demand, such as data centres, which wasn't central to the first round of reform.
Sources
Based on the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan, NESO's advice and planning publications, and Ofgem decisions. See the policy timeline for key dates.
Follow the news
Latest stories on Clean Power 2030, Strategic & Regional Planning, Great British Energy. For terms, see the glossary; for key dates, the policy timeline.