When it comes to renewables, we can now see a future where almost all of our electricity in the United Kingdom comes from climate friendly energy sources such as the wind, wave and the sun.

We're already making huge progress! Since 2004, renewable energy in the United Kingdom has grown and 37% of electricity is now from renewable sources. It's now cheaper to build and run wind and solar energy than it is gas!

Are renewable energy sources cost effective?

Fossil fuels dominate the global power supply because until very recently, the electricity we were getting from fossil fuels was the cheapest. This has changed dramatically. In most places the power from new renewables is now cheaper than new fossil fuels.

Shifting subsidies from fossil fuels to renewable energy not only cuts emissions, it also contributes to the sustainable economic growth, job creation, better public health and more equality, particularly for the poor and most vulnerable communities around the world.

The price of renewable energy is rapidly falling and solar costs have dropped globally by 90% since 2009. In fact, wind and solar are now the cheapest sources of new electricity.

"Global solar and wind costs have fallen during the last decade and onshore wind is also now 68% less expensive than 10 years ago" IRENA reports. "Meanwhile, costs for electricity from utility-scale solar photovoltaics (PV) fell 85%".

While many renewables are already recognised as cost-effective, it is now increasingly being accepted that in combination with storage and demand response they can also provide reliable power, and form the central basis of a clean energy system.

What will the future energy grid look like?

In the future, most of our power, including that used to heat our homes and power our cars, will come mostly from wind and solar power. And a smaller percentage from tidal, hydro and geothermal. Our grid will become even smarter to match supply and demand, reducing costs while keeping our kettles boiling! Electric cars and batteries will stockpile electricity for us. We might also convert power into hydrogen gas for long-term storage.

We already know the solutions to climate breakdown, one of which is switching our power supply to renewables. Renewable energy sources, combined with high levels of storage, demand side response and the ability to trade power across regions will be the best solution to decarbonise the UK’s electricity system, delivering affordable and reliable energy.

Cheap electricity from renewable sources could provide 65 percent of the world's total electricity supply by 2030. It could decarbonize 90 percent of the power sector by 2050, massively cutting carbon emissions and helping to mitigate climate change.‍

‍Benefits of Renewable Energy Use

• Less global warming.
• Improved public health.
• Inexhaustible energy.
• Jobs and other economic benefits.
• Stable energy prices.
• Reliability and resilience.

How Universal Skills can help you!

Here at Universal Skills, we want to give you the skills to prepare for a greener future. Our aim is to focus on creating a sustainable future, offering you the modern training in Electrical and Renewable courses to upskill your qualifications ready for these big changes the industry will be facing in the near future.

We offer courses from Electric Car Charge Point Installation to Solar PV, Energy Storage and Air Source Heat Pumps (coming very soon!).

It's the perfect time to upskill your qualifications to get ahead of the rush!

If you're interested in any of these courses, please head to our website for more information. www.universalskillsgroup.co.uk