According to analysis from Octopus Energy cited by the BBC, balancing the grid in this bizarre way has already cost the country over £500 million in 2025 alone. The National Electricity System Operator (NESO) warns this figure could skyrocket to nearly £8 billion a year by 2030 if nothing changes.

This process is called "curtailment," and it exposes a fundamental flaw in the UK's green energy transition. We've become world leaders at building renewable generation but have failed to invest in the infrastructure needed to use it.

What is Curtailment and Why Is It Happening?

In simple terms, curtailment is when renewable energy sources are told to reduce their output or switch off entirely. This happens when the electricity grid—the network of pylons and cables that transports power—cannot handle the amount of energy being produced.

This is precisely what's happening in the UK. The electricity grid was designed decades ago for a different era, built to move power from large coal and gas plants located near industrial centres. As the BBC notes, it wasn't designed to transport vast amounts of electricity from remote, windy seas and rural areas in Scotland to the population hubs in the south.

The scale of the waste is staggering. A report in The Conversation highlights that nearly 40% of the electricity generated by Scottish wind farms was wasted in the first half of 2025 because the grid couldn't move or store it. [1] A report from Montel Analytics found that this wasted energy would have been enough to power every home in Scotland for six months. [2]

The absurdity is captured in a single moment reported by the BBC: at 1 a.m. on June 3, 2025, the offshore wind developer Ocean Winds was paid £72,000 not to generate power for a 30-minute period. Simultaneously, the Grain gas-fired power station near London was paid £43,000 to produce more electricity. This isn't an isolated incident. According to analysis cited by the BBC, Seagreen, Scotland's largest wind farm, was paid £65 million last year and was forced to restrict its output 71% of the time.

The Scale of the Waste

• In the first half of 2025, nearly 40% of Scottish wind farm electricity was wasted because the grid couldn't move or store it.^[1]
• Enough wasted power to run every home in Scotland for six months.^[2]
• £72,000 paid to one wind developer for a 30-minute period not to generate (June 3, 2025). At the same time, a gas plant near London was paid £43,000 to ramp up.
• Seagreen, Scotland's largest wind farm, was paid £65 million last year and forced to restrict output 71% of the time.

Who Pays for This Waste? You do.

Every time a wind farm is paid to switch off and a gas plant is paid to switch on, the cost is added to the "balancing mechanism" of the national grid. These costs, known as constraint payments, are ultimately passed on to every household and business in the country through energy bills. [3][4] As The Conversation points out, consumers' bills are high due to a combination of imported gas costs, guaranteed prices for renewable producers, and these very infrastructure shortfalls. [1]

This directly undermines the promise that renewables would deliver cheaper electricity. Instead, we are paying for clean energy we don't use, and then paying again for expensive, polluting energy to replace it.

The Impact: A Green Goal Undermined

• Scotland produces far more renewable power than it needs, but much is wasted.
• Turning off wind and turning on gas increases carbon emissions and makes Net Zero harder and costlier.^[7]
• This is a classic "cart before horse": governments built wind and solar, but often neglected the vital—but less visible—grid upgrades.
• A grid that can't accept all renewables creates risk for investors and slows the green transition.

Finding a Way Out: Solutions for a Broken System

1. Build a Bigger Grid
   The National Grid's Great Grid Upgrade is underway, with up to £77 billion planned between 2026 and 2031, including new high-voltage links like Eastern Green Link 2 (a subsea cable from Scotland to England).^[8][9] The challenge? These upgrades take years—and renewables are being built much faster.^[10]
2. Regional Pricing: A Radical Shake-Up
   Instead of a single national price, zonal pricing would mean different electricity prices in different regions. On a windy day, Scottish prices would plunge, possibly even free. This could attract energy-intensive industries north, creating jobs and using clean power at source.^[11][12][13]
   But critics warn it could create a "postcode lottery" for bills, with Londoners paying more, and make renewables riskier to finance.^[14][15]
3. Energy Storage: Saving Power for Later
   
   • Batteries: Store excess wind/solar, release when needed. Germany is investing heavily in this.^[16][17]
   • Green hydrogen: Use surplus renewables to make hydrogen, store it underground, and use it to generate power when needed. Projects are being planned in the UK.^[18]

What Can Consumers Expect?

There are no quick fixes. Grid upgrades and storage will require huge investment, partly funded through energy bills.^[9] The UK’s geography—windy but less sunny—means it faces unique challenges on the road to cheap renewable energy.^[1]

References

1. The Conversation: Scotland wasted 40% of its wind power in early 2025—here's what we should do instead
2. Montel Analytics: Scotland wasted enough wind to power every home for six months
3. BBC: The UK wind farms paid to switch off
4. BBC: Wind farms paid to switch off – and fossil fuels paid to fill the gap
5. Octopus Energy: UK energy constraint payments analysis
6. Scottish Renewables: Frustrations over wasted Scottish green power
7. Carbon Brief: Curtailment and UK carbon costs
8. National Grid: The Great Grid Upgrade
9. Ofgem: Electricity Network Upgrades
10. Financial Times: Grid delays could slow UK renewables rollout
11. BBC: Should electricity be cheaper in Scotland?
12. Octopus Energy: Zonal pricing explained
13. Svenska kraftnät: Sweden's electricity price zones
14. RWE: Zonal pricing warning
15. BBC: Zonal pricing policy fight
16. Energy Storage News: Germany invests in grid-scale battery storage
17. Reuters: Germany's energy storage plans
18. UKOG: Green hydrogen storage projects