BYOP: Bring your own power

Confidence returns to UK energy markets 

After a period of uncertainty, there are signs that confidence is returning to the UK renewable energy sector, as we explore in a new Energy Insights Quarterly. Transaction activity across solar and battery storage is recovering following a quieter 2025, with the combination of connection queue reform and the record-breaking Contracts for Difference (CfD) Allocation Round 7 improving confidence around project delivery and future cashflows. Transaction volumes in battery storage are now at their highest level since 2024 according to data from Clean Energy Pipeline (see below).

Even with another(!) change in Prime Minister and a resulting Cabinet reshuffle, policy momentum has largely continued through the summer. New DESNZ Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh brings a degree of continuity, having previously served as a Parliamentary Under-Secretary in the department where she consistently supported action on climate and energy security. Allocation Round 8 of the CfD scheme opened earlier than usual, while planning reforms and continued efforts to accelerate grid connections reinforce the sense that the UK's energy transition remains a strategic priority. For investors, the market backdrop arguably looks more supportive than it has for some time, even if delivery challenges remain. 

Read more about this here. 

BYOP 

Grid constraints, rising power demand and the growing importance of energy resilience are making energy infrastructure a prominent consideration in real estate strategies. Regular readers may feel a sense of déjà vu: we've covered the topic in this newsletter before and in the Knight Frank (Y)OUR SPACE digest and Real Assets Report. While behind-the-meter (BTM) energy solutions, including on-site solar PV, battery storage and private-wire connections are often associated with large energy users, our latest research suggests they are increasingly relevant across a much wider range of real estate assets. 

While interest in BTM is often linked to grid constraints, the benefits extend beyond access to power. Dedicated energy infrastructure can improve resilience, increase flexibility and provide greater cost certainty at a time when non-domestic electricity and gas prices remain substantially above pre-crisis levels. According to the latest DESNZ figures, which predate the latest elevation, non-domestic electricity prices were around 69% higher in Q1 2026 than the 2019-21 average, with gas prices 84% higher. 

This trend is visible within the development pipeline. Analysis of large and mega planning applications submitted between 2016 and 2026 found that references to solar PV and battery storage in data centre developments increased from around 18% between 2016 and 2020 to 26% since 2021. Across industrial and logistics developments, references increased from 13% to 18% over the same period, reflecting growing interest in on-site energy generation and storage as part of wider development strategies. At the same time, data centre schemes have shown a marked increase in references to supporting grid infrastructure, highlighting the growing importance of power availability in development decisions (chart below). 

The shift is not limited to new development. Existing buildings and estates are also being assessed for solar PV, battery storage and dedicated renewable energy supply, particularly where organisations face a combination of high energy costs, resilience requirements and decarbonisation targets. This is evident across large public-sector estates, including healthcare, higher education and transport. The wider market points in the same direction with annual installed solar capacity across projects between 10kW and 5MW reaching 350MW in the year to June 2026, compared with just 67MW in year to June 2021.

As David Goatman, Global Head of Energy & Sustainability at Knight Frank, notes: “Alongside the need to reduce energy bills, we are seeing growing demand from both landlords and occupiers to reduce energy spend through BTM projects, particularly on-site and near-site solar PV and battery storage.” For property owners and occupiers, energy is increasingly becoming an asset management issue as much as a procurement consideration, with organisations seeking greater control over costs, resilience and long-term power supply. 

Stat of the month – 380,000

The approximate number of listed buildings in England that may find it easier to undertake energy-efficiency upgrades following changes to the National Planning Policy Framework. The revised policy gives substantial weight to the benefits of improving the energy performance of existing buildings and recognises both the reuse of vacant or underused listed buildings and the installation of energy-efficiency and low-carbon heating measures as important public benefits in planning decisions. Having previously highlighted the challenges of future-proofing historic buildings (Preserving the past: Future-proofing UK's historic buildings) , this could mark an important step towards unlocking retrofit across parts of the historic built environment.

What else I am reading

Climate change could cost London £36 billion a year by 2050s, as new Draft London Plan sets energy use intensity targets for buildings and Could climate adaptation help save the high street? (Business Green).