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Grid delays and planning gaps top agenda at Onshore Wind 2026 as sector demands policy certainty. Home / Blog / News / Grid delays and planning gaps top agenda at Onshore Wind 2026 as sector demands policy certainty. Emily Burn August 29, 2026 0 Comments Onshore wind policy certainty is the defining demand heading into ERM's co-hosted Onshore Wind Conference 2026, with developers, lawyers and asset owners converging on Edinburgh to press the case that grid constraints, consenting delays and unclear market signals are now the primary brake on deployment, not the technology itself. The conference, co-hosted by RenewableUK and Scottish Renewables on 1-2 September, will take place at the EICC Edinburgh. According to RenewableUK, over 1,000 attendees and 60 exhibitors are expected, numbers that put the scale of the sector's mobilisation in sharp relief against the policy gaps it is still trying to close. What industry voices are actually saying about onshore wind policy certainty. Scottish Renewables chief executive Angela Hepworth has set out perhaps the sharpest framing of the moment. The Strategic Spatial Energy Plan, she argues, 'must provide a clear trajectory beyond 2030 that supports Scotland's onshore wind opportunity and gives confidence in both new development and its existing fleet.' That is a pointed request: not a vague call for ambition, but a demand for a dated, legible pathway that developers can price against. Hepworth's case rests on a foundation worth stating plainly. Scotland already has more than 10GW of onshore wind operating, supporting more than 16,000 jobs. The argument is not that the sector needs to be built; it is that a sector already at scale is being held back by policy misalignment across planning, grid, charging and market frameworks. Shoosmiths legal director for energy and infrastructure Jacques Camilleri echoes the grid concern without softening it. Scotland has a significant pipeline capable of supporting further growth, he notes, but grid constraints, connection delays and wider market challenges continue to limit its potential. His warning to developers is operational as much as political: 'Developers must increasingly align construction programmes with evolving grid connection requirements, while ensuring projects remain commercially viable as procurement, financing and delivery requirements evolve.' That is a polite way of saying the goalposts keep moving, and someone has to absorb the cost. Vattenfall UK head of onshore wind market development Matt Bacon adds transmission infrastructure, faster consenting and clear market signals to the list of requirements. In a Q&A for the conference's show daily, he describes the UK as entering a new phase of onshore wind growth, with activity expected to increase in England while Scotland works through its existing pipeline. Grid availability, network constraints, planning timelines and radar interference are, in his view, the four biggest delivery challenges currently. His prescription: stable allocation rounds, clear policy signals and a predictable investment environment. Nothing here is new in concept; the persistence of the ask is the point. Repowering moves from aspiration to operational reality. Alongside the new-build agenda, repowering is emerging as a concrete near-term opportunity across the UK's roughly 17GW onshore wind fleet. Nadara UK head of development Finley Becks-Phelps describes repowering as an important part of the sector's future pathway and a proven means of increasing output from some of the country's best wind sites. Those sites carry a structural advantage: they already have planning history, access roads and, in many cases, grid connections. The question is whether the consenting and commercial frameworks will allow developers to realise that advantage efficiently. ScottishPower Renewables has put a number on what repowering can look like at scale. The company has announced plans to repower Whitelee wind farm through a £1.5bn investment programme that could double top capacity to around 1GW+. Whitelee is already one of Europe's largest onshore wind farms; a doubling of capacity from an existing, consented site represents exactly the kind of low-friction deployment the sector says it needs more of. The broader message from the Edinburgh gathering is consistent: onshore wind policy certainty is not a political nicety but a commercial prerequisite. Investment decisions are being deferred, not cancelled, and the sector's argument is that the pipeline exists, the sites are known and the technology is ready. The Strategic Spatial Energy Plan's trajectory beyond 2030 will be the first real test of whether government has heard that case. Quick links. Initial contact with its energy advisor was very efficient and informative with all the facts available. The installation team of three were very good, helpful, informative polite and clean. All items of admin were confirmed quickly, clearly and concisely. Very pleased with all aspects of the work and the people concerned. Biggreenswitch would have no hesitation in recommending you to other people. Get in touch. Contact Big green switch. Please enter the following characters into the box beneath. This helps Biggreenswitch to weed out spam enquiries. Astley Park Business Centre, Kennedy Road Astley Manchester, M29 7JY Call Biggreenswitch Now Trade memberships & accreditations. Big Green Switch is a trading style of Perfect Sense Energy. Biggreenswitch also specialise in... Contact Biggreenswitch. Perfect Sense Energy Astley Park Business Centre Kennedy Road Astley Manchester, M29 7JY Call Biggreenswitch. Free no obligation quote. Biggreenswitch would love to quote for your renewable energy project. Requesting a quote takes less than 60 seconds.

PGW examines pathways to reduce emissions. Posted on: Jul 29, 2026 PGW is identifying potential decarbonization options to shape future energy decisions Philadelphia (July 29, 2026) - Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW) is dedicated to leading Philadelphia's clean energy future and is pursuing several different opportunities and initiatives to move the company and the City forward. One effort launched this year is PGW's Low Carbon Pathways project, aimed at exploring possible long-term decarbonization pathways while also prioritizing safety, affordability and reliability to advance decarbonization goals and support a cleaner, greener Philadelphia. To undertake important work, PGW engaged a leading sustainability consulting firm, Environmental Resources Management, Inc. (ERM), which was competitively selected by PGW to support analytical modeling and stakeholder engagement. "The goal of this study is to explore a range of viable options as representative examples for comparison, and to establish a foundation for future decision making," said Janelle Johnson-Grummert, PGW's Director of Sustainability. "As we drive sustainability efforts, we want to prioritize the greatest emission reductions possible while ensuring no customers are left behind and all have access to safe, reliable, and affordable energy." To continue reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG) in Philadelphia, PGW has set annual emissions reductions targets since 2023, to meet its ambitious long-term goals. For its 2025 fiscal year (September to August), PGW's target reduction was 10,500 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) and PGW notably exceeded this target, achieving a total reduction of over 12,000 metric tons of CO2e. PGW currently accounts for approximately 21 percent of the City of Philadelphia's city-wide GHG emissions. While PGW's share of GHG emissions is less than transportation and electricity, the reductions PGW is making a meaningful step in achieving the City of Philadelphia's commitment to reach carbon neutrality by 2050. Led by ERM and PGW, the comprehensive analysis will look at outcomes from several scenarios, including: * PGW's current natural gas network and emission-reduction programs; * a hybrid, or mix of electric and gas systems; and * a shift away from natural gas towards more electricity usage for space heating, cooking, drying, and water heating. The Low Carbon Pathways Project study and will be completed in fall 2026. As part of the study PGW will host two virtual community engagement sessions to discuss and gather feedback from Philadelphians to help inform PGW's ongoing and future work. More information about the Low Carbon Pathways study and PGW's ongoing sustainability work can be found at pgworks.com/sustainability. For Media help call its media hotline - Phone: (267) 249-7542

Report on cost-effective F-gas emission reduction option for PFAS restriction. 22.06.2026 The European Partnership for Energy and the Environment (EPEE) commissioned Environmental Resources Management Ltd (ERM) to conduct a Socio-Economic Assessment (SEA) and Analysis of Alternatives (AoA) on the use of F-gas refrigerants in RACHP (refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pump) applications. The study evaluates the potential impacts of restricting per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under REACH on the RACHP sector across four application groups: (1) comfort heating and cooling; (2) industrial processes for heating and cooling; (3) commercial and industrial refrigeration; and (4) transport refrigeration. The report evaluated and compared continued use of F-gases with Risk Mitigation Measures (RMM), a baseline with no restrictions and the two restriction options (full ban and full ban with derogations as set out in the updated restriction dossier published by ECHA in August 2025). The RMM option is introduced in the report as an alternative regulatory option. For the RMM, F-gases remain permitted subject to a projected maximum leak rate per equipment category and progressively higher end-of-life recovery rates. These are aligned with EPEE HFC Outlook model assumptions. A cautious 5% whole-of-life cost increase is modelled for the leak rate reduction. The ERM study's central conclusion is that the RMM is the most proportionate regulatory option: it achieves a 39% reduction in PFAS emissions at €20/kg - compared to €92/kg under full ban - while avoiding severe economic and market disruption, over 43,000 direct job losses in 2030 and significant supply chain risks. The SEAC's draft opinion has already noted that a full ban appears likely disproportionate. The data show that full ban with derogations performs worse than the RMM on cost-effectiveness while delivering far lower emission reductions. Key finding: continued use under conditions (RMM) is the most proportionate restriction option The key headline findings are: * Cost-effectiveness under RMM is 4.6x better than full ban (€92) and 10x better than full ban with derogations (€198) * GVA (gross value added) impact under RMM is 8x lower than both full ban and full ban with derogations * The RMM avoids more PFAS emissions than full ban with derogations, at one tenth the economic cost * For comfort heating and cooling: the RMM emission reduction exceeds full ban, because RMMs apply to the existing installed base, not only new products placed on market from 2030 * About 42,800 jobs preserved in 2030 under the RMM, compared to the full ban The reports key messages (extracts) are: Material economic impact. A full ban would deliver the largest emission reduction but at severe socio-economic cost. A full ban with derogations offers limited environmental benefit relative to its cost. The RMM option provides the best cost-effectiveness and system continuity and is the preferred option for stationary applications. Broader system dependencies and wider impacts. Downstream sectors face elevated operational and supply-chain risks if refrigerant availability is constrained without workable alternatives. Reduced refrigerant choice would weaken EU manufacturing competitiveness, slow heat-pump rollout, and risk backsliding on electrification and decarbonisation objectives, leading to a lock-in on fossil fuel-based technologies. No universal alternative refrigerant exists for RACHP applications. There is no single alternative refrigerant that can safely, efficiently and economically replace F-gases across all RACHP applications. Non-PFAS alternatives are constrained by flammability, toxicity, high pressure and performance limits. Safety - not refrigerant choice - is the dominant factor determining whether substitution is feasible for a given application. Transition timelines proposed are unrealistic. Substituting refrigerants requires long, application-specific development cycles - typically 5-12 years and longer for novel solutions - significantly exceeding the derogation periods proposed under the PFAS restriction for many applications. Proportionality, sequencing and coherence with F-gas policies are essential. A future PFAS regulation must reduce environmental risk without jeopardising EU climate, industrial and social goals. Building on the F-gas Regulation rather than overriding it is the only path that achieves both objectives. The RMM option demonstrates that this is possible. These are extracts of the report which has detailed sections on * Background and Regulatory Context * Study Methodology and Scenarios * Analysis of Alternatives (AoA) * Socio-Economic Assessment (SEA) The Executive Report of the ERM Socio-Economic Assessment on F-gas Uses in HVACR Applications Prepared in the framework of the SEAC Public Consultation on PFAS under REACH - May 2026, commissioned by EPEE is available here.