NEWS & INSIGHTS | Opinion
Solutions to renewable energy curtailment in Scotland
Luca Corradi
Luca works to bring “the outside in”, connecting innovators and academics across sectors and disciplines, to explore the latest technologies that could be adopted to address oil and gas industry challenges. Leading The Net Zero Technology Centre’s horizon scanning activity, he identifies emerging technology trends, cutting through the hype to identify potential areas of impact and application. With a background in business and organisational change leadership, Luca has developed a strong network and is passionate about harnessing this to deliver the next generation of the net zero energy industry.
Outside work Luca loves reading, music and travel. He is married with two young daughters and a dog. He enjoys the rare motorbike ride in Scotland and even rarer ski trip on the Alps.
This week’s net zero news: UK Curtailment; ENLIGHT Nuclear Programme; Clean Shipping Fuels
Chief Technology Officer at NZTC, Luca Corradi, and his team closely monitor the global net zero landscape. They follow the trends, policies, investments, and technological innovations that, together, bring the world closer to its shared climate goals. Learn more about our horizon scanning service. This week, Luca and his team look at wind curtailment challenges and opportunities, next-generation nuclear energy, and advancements in methanol and ammonia as shipping fuels.
Grid constraints threaten renewable energy utilisation in Northern Scotland
Meeting clean power targets by 2030 will require more renewable generation to come online than ever before. However, much of this energy is being curtailed – switched off at the source – due to a range of challenges. For renewables to be used effectively, deployment must be aligned with public infrastructure and systems. Yet, a growing disconnect between renewable rollout and grid capacity is creating network constraints, particularly in northern Scotland.
In the first half of 2025, 4.6 TWh of electricity was curtailed in Great Britain – a 15% increase compared to the same period in 2024. Despite the rise in volume, curtailment costs fell by 7% year-on-year to £152 million, driven by lower average prices paid per megawatt-hour.
Northern Scotland experienced the highest levels of curtailment, with over 4 TWh curtailed. This accounted for 86% of the total curtailed volume and 76% of the associated costs.
That’s enough electricity to power all Scottish households for six months. It also means that only 63% of potential renewable energy reached the grid, with 37% lost due to constraints.
Looking ahead, NESO’s Future Energy Scenarios project that curtailment could rise to 35–40 TWh annually by 2040. But there are opportunities to reduce this. Redirecting curtailed power to produce hydrogen or support technologies like direct air capture could significantly lower curtailment levels by 2050. Energy storage also plays a key role – allowing electricity to be held until the grid can accommodate it or when market conditions are more favourable.
Renewable power curtailment per year (TWh): NESO forecast from future energy sceanrios
Source: Montel Energy
ENLIGHT Programme to advance sustainable graphite solutions for next-gen nuclear reactors
The five-year ENLIGHT programme (Enabling a Lifecycle Approach to Graphite for Advanced Modular Reactors) aims to develop technologies that support the deployment of next-generation nuclear energy. Backed by an £8.2 million grant from UKRI’s Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), and around £5 million in contributions from industry partners, the programme will be led by the University of Manchester in collaboration with the Universities of Oxford, Plymouth and Loughborough.
With the UK targeting 24GW of new nuclear power by 2050, Advanced Modular Reactors (AMRs) are expected to play a key role. ENLIGHT will tackle two major challenges facing next-generation AMRs: securing a sustainable, sovereign supply of nuclear graphite, and managing the UK’s growing volume of irradiated graphite waste – a critical component in many AMR designs.
As the current Advanced Gas-cooled Reactor fleet approaches decommissioning by 2028, and with over 100,000 tonnes of irradiated graphite already in storage, ENLIGHT will focus on recycling legacy materials and producing sustainable, high-performance graphite for future reactors.
The programme will be delivered through three core strands:
- Designing new graphite materials engineered to withstand extreme conditions
- Developing sustainable graphite production methods
- Improving understanding of graphite performance across its lifecycle
Methanol and Ammonia as emerging fuels for shipping decarbonisation
Methanol and ammonia are not yet widely adopted in shipping, but both are expected to play a major role in the sector’s decarbonisation. Because these fuels cannot simply be “dropped in” to existing infrastructure, their adoption depends on the coordinated development of new technologies – both on land and at sea. This makes piloting and demonstration especially critical.
Methanol has moved beyond proof of concept. Around 60 methanol-capable vessels are already in operation, with more than 300 additional ships on order. Nearly 20 ports now offer green methanol bunkering.
Ammonia is rapidly approaching proof of concept. The first ammonia-powered vessels have been successfully piloted, engine testing is nearing completion, and bunkering trials are underway at several major ports.
Despite significant progress since 2020, both fuels still require a concerted effort to scale rapidly from 2030 onwards in line with the industry’s decarbonisation targets. The key challenge lies in the fuel supply chain. For methanol, this means increasing the availability of green molecules. For ammonia, it involves validating and deploying commercial bunkering infrastructure at key ports.
Subscribe for the latest updates
