Solar Powers Record 14.4% of UK Electricity in July
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- Solar generation supplied 14.4% of Great Britain's electricity in July — a new monthly record, up from 12.4% in May and 50% higher than July last year's 9.6%, according to the National Energy System Operator (Neso).
- Rooftop installations drove a surge in new solar capacity, with 142,536 new systems added in the first half of the year — the largest six-month total since 2011 — putting 2026 on track to exceed last year's record additions.
- Household panels now account for slightly less than a third of Britain's total solar capacity, with energy companies attributing the uptake to households seeking to cut bills as fossil fuel prices have risen.
- The Cleve Hill solar farm in Kent, the UK's largest operating project at 373MW, will be eclipsed by the planned 800MW Springwell solar farm in Lincolnshire, which is expected to begin generating in 2029.
- Chris Hewett, chief executive of trade body Solar Energy UK, said solar had moved from being "a footnote in the electricity mix" 15 years ago to "a major player, delivering homegrown, cheap, clean and reliable energy."
- Frankie Mayo, senior analyst at clean power thinktank Ember, said Britain is "firmly in its second solar boom," with rooftop solar powering the equivalent of over five hours of air-conditioning per day during the June heatwave.
- Energy minister Michael Shanks tied the record to energy security, saying: "The more power we generate here in Britain, the less exposed families and businesses are to global energy price shocks."
Why it matters: Solar jumped from a footnote to nearly one-seventh of Britain's monthly electricity supply in just over a decade, with rooftop systems — not utility-scale farms — driving the latest boom as households hedge against fossil fuel bills. With 142,536 new installations already in H1, the consumer-led shift is reshaping who generates power and insulating households from global price shocks.
