New solar panels in Great Britain at 15-year high as fossil fuel costs soar
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- Great Britain added 142,536 solar installations in the first half of 2026, the highest six-month figure since 2011 and putting the country on track to surpass last year's record annual additions; the previous half-year peak was 167,316 in H2 2011.
- E.ON Next reported a 151% rise in homes installing solar panels in H1 2026 versus the same period a year earlier, with some customers saving up to £600 annually on its solar-and-battery tariff, according to director Phil Gilbert.
- Octopus Energy said solar panel sales jumped more than 54% in March compared with the month before, tying the spike directly to the Middle East conflict that pushed oil and gas prices higher.
- The government raised its Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant by 20%, from £7,500 to £9,000, while applications for low-carbon heating replacements hit 4,512 last month—up 21% year-over-year.
- Andy Burnham cut VAT on electricity bills from October, lowering the running costs of heat pumps and other electric alternatives to gas boilers.
- Britain's largest operational solar farm is now Cleve Hill in Kent at 373MW, dwarfing the original 1.4MW Wheal Jane site built on a disused Cornwall tin mine in 2011; the 800MW Springwell project in Lincolnshire is due online in 2029.
- From the end of August, balcony solar panels become available to UK billpayers in flats or rented properties under legislation passed this month, opening solar to households that can't fit rooftop arrays.
Why it matters: With more than 2m solar installations now across Great Britain and rooftop household panels accounting for the bulk of new additions, the household shift toward self-generated electricity is being accelerated by fossil-fuel price spikes and rising government grants—E.ON reports customers save up to £600 a year on solar-and-battery tariffs, and Octopus saw a 54% one-month sales jump after the Middle East conflict sent gas prices higher.
