But mixed in with that world-leading thinking have been frustrating policy decisions and slow progress in key areas. Crucially, a failure to reform the market at the same time and pace as adopting renewables has led to issues like high prices, which no one’s been able to fix.

For this blog, I’ve chosen five lessons other countries could learn from the UK’s experience.

1. Government intervention can turbocharge investment in renewables – but it needs checks and balances

The Contracts for Difference (CfDs) scheme sees offshore wind developers bid for contracts to generate electricity at a fixed “strike price” for 15 years. It’s like being paid a fixed amount for the tomatoes you grow – even in the summer when they’d otherwise be cheap.

By generating healthy returns for little risk, CfDs have led to huge investment in North Sea wind farms and made the UK an industry leader. But a failed Allocation Round (AR) in 2023, which received no bids, showed the importance of pricing contracts at commercially viable levels.

Meanwhile, critics say that CfDs have led to high profits for investors and high prices for consumers. But other factors play a role in the second issue. System electricity prices are still set by gas, not renewables. And successive governments have placed overall system and decarbonisation costs on electricity, rather than raise retail gas prices. (More on these structural issues later.)

What other countries can do

  • Share risk evenly between governments (representing consumers) and investors.
  • Play to your national strengths, as the UK did with its long North Sea coastline and offshore experience in oil and gas.
  • Include checks and balances – for example, a windfall tax – to prevent excessive profits and inflated consumer prices.

2. Engaging the public requires clear, coordinated communication

In a 2024 YouGov poll, 80% of UK consumers were in favour of expanding offshore wind and solar. But another 2024 poll, by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), showed that just 23% would welcome new energy infrastructure in their own area.

This mixed picture extends to consumer action. Most UK households still use gas for heating and hot water. And a government scheme has only supported an average of 900+ low-carbon heating system installations per month  ­– far short of its 600,000-a-year goal. Only around 1 in 20 cars are EVs, though the share of new cars sold that are fully electric has roughly doubled over the past four years. And while smart meter installations are at record levels, three in 10 households still don’t have one.

What other countries can do

  • Create a ‘journey to Net Zero’ story in three parts: large-scale changes, like phasing out coal-fired generation; changes that make low-carbon easy, like public EV charging; and simple actions for consumers, like installing smart meters.
  • Focus on positive benefits, like lower bills and cleaner air, rather than the threat of climate change.
  • Balance consumer choice against wider benefits to society: mandatory smart meter schemes get faster results.

3. It takes political will and investor trust to reform the market

The UK has the highest electricity prices in Europe, despite renewables providing more than half of its energy. In fact, gas sets the wholesale price almost all the time.

The government’s Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA) aimed to address this by aligning prices to renewables, reducing dependency on fossil fuels and encouraging flexibility. Yet of the reforms it included, only a handful survive as part of a smaller-scale Reformed National Package (RNP), which doesn’t solve the original structural issues.

A central proposal in REMA was Zonal Pricing, where electricity prices would vary across regions based on local supply and demand. But this met with significant opposition, particularly from renewable developers worried that projects in low-price zones would become unviable. And in June 2025, the government abandoned the plan. Even with a strong parliamentary majority, a committed Energy Minister, public support and industry agreement that reform is needed, the UK couldn’t deliver fundamental change.

What other countries can do

  • Establish cross-party agreements and independent advisory or regulatory bodies to separate long-term energy reform from short-term politics and maintain momentum.
  • Take an inclusive approach to market redesign by consulting early and considering the impact on consumers, investors and operators.
  • Protect existing investors during reforms to stop them leaving for more favorable conditions overseas.

4. Establishing an independent system operator builds trust and transparency

On 1 October 2024, the publicly owned UK National Energy System Operator (NESO) was officially established, taking over system operation functions previously carried out by National Grid.

NESO now controls real-time electricity flow; determines what infrastructure is needed, when and where; provides electricity market operations and guides the industry towards Net Zero. The move has created more independent governance of the energy system, leaving it less open to complaints over conflicts of interest or favoring specific solutions.

NESO joins a group of bodies responsible for governing the energy transition in the UK, including  

DESNZ, the regulator Ofgem and the Climate Change Committee.While their boundaries and responsibilities still need clarifying, they mark a significant, collective effort to drive the energy transition. 

What other countries can do

  • Consider establishing of an independent system operator if your market is complex, with a diverse set of energy system stakeholders. NESO has already increased stakeholder confidence through more transparent, non-commercial decision-making.

5. Fuel poverty shows why the transition must work for everyone

An estimated 4.5 million UK households – roughly 15% of all homes – live in fuel poverty. Charities define this as spending over 10% of household income on energy; among pensioners, the proportion can reach 15%.

Successive governments have tried to fix the problem by spending billions on insulation and energy-saving schemes. Yet fuel poverty remains stubbornly high, in turn driving up household energy debt. People in fuel poverty also can’t afford technologies like solar panels, batteries, or smart meters that could reduce bills. And many don’t have a smart meter to take advantage of time-of-use tariffs, which offer cheaper electricity during off-peak hours.

With households paying around £1,700 a year on energy, even a £300 reduction would make a meaningful difference. Without it, each winter millions of people in the UK must still choose between heating and eating.

What other countries can do

  • Enable all households to take part in the energy transition by installing smart meters (as part of a mandatory roll-out, if necessary) and extending schemes for insulating homes, installing heat pumps or fitting solar panels.
  • Improve housing stock systematically, especially in the rental sector, recovering costs through lower welfare payments.

Last word

The UK has much to be proud of; where it struggles is by trying to run renewables in a market designed for fossil fuels. For everyone to reap the benefits of a renewables-based system – solid returns for investors and affordable prices for consumers – you need to reform the market. Which means having the political will, the support of consumers and the agreement of industry.