As renewables dominate more of the UK grid, the role of gas is being fundamentally redefined. It’s no longer the workhorse it once was, but we’re still going to need a lot of it. Even if gas makes up just 5% of electricity generation by 2030, we could still need around 35GW of capacity to back up wind and solar when the weather doesn’t play ball. Transitioning from today's two-shift, baseload model to one that acts more like a strategic reserve in an intermittent, renewables-driven system.

In this episode of Transmission, Tom Glover, UK Country Chair for RWE, joins the podcast to explore the future of gas in a net-zero electricity system, the realities of hydrogen and CCS retrofits, and what it will take to revive onshore wind in Great Britain.  Key topics include:

Why the UK still needs 35GW of gas capacity, even as generation declines.
What hydrogen and CCS really mean for the future of thermal plants.
How gas is shifting from a baseload resource to a flexibility reserve.
Why market design and investment signals must evolve for net zero.
What’s holding back UK onshore wind and how to fix it.

About our guest

Tom Glover is the UK Country Chair at RWE, which operates Britain’s largest power generation fleet. With more than two decades of experience in the energy sector, Tom brings a wide-angle view of how the UK’s electricity system is changing from fossil fuels to renewables, and everything in between. He also chairs RWE’s UK renewables business and holds board roles at Energy UK and the Carbon Capture and Storage Association, making him a key voice in the country’s energy transition conversation.

About Modo Energy

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What’s Next for Gas in a Renewable-Powered Grid with Tom Glover (RWE)

Transmission

What’s Next for Gas in a Renewable-Powered Grid with Tom Glover (RWE)