Current± rounds up the top electric vehicle (EV) stories from this week.

The UK has reached a crucial milestone in the race for net zero having surpassed one trillion kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity generated from renewables.

The “UK’s first” independent Distribution System Operator (DSO) – launched by UK Power Networks (UKPN) in April 2023 – is set to deliver over 400MW of additional electricity capacity.

Octopus Energy’s generation arm has partnered with Legal & General Capital to invest £70 million in UK ground source heat pump manufacturer, The Kensa Group.

The National Grid ESO says that its five-point plan to speed up electricity grid connections will cut waiting times for 70% of projects due to connect after 2026 by two to ten years. 

This week’s issue of Current± Price Watch – powered by Enact – explores Cornwall Insight's latest price cap shifting only £38, wind generating more British electricity than gas for the first time and the demand flexibility service scheme displacing the need for 3.3GWh of electricity.

National Grid has called for a “fundamental step-change” the scale and pace of delivering a new electricity network infrastructure in order to gain a competitive advantage in the international race for clean investment.

An 8MW grid connection to the Cowley bus depot will be built under an agreement between EDF Renewables UK and the Oxford Bus Company to power an electric fleet of buses for Oxford. 

The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) says that current UK government policies will leave British consumers dependent on foreign gas imports into the 2030s. 

The Office for National Statistics’ latest Climate Change insights data has revealed that 2023 has been a “warmer than average” year as consumption-based greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions fall by only 2% from 2018.