As the UK power sector expands and transforms to be dominated by variable cheap renewables like wind and solar, more flexible generation capacity and demand side flexibility will be necessary.

Current market arrangements favour new, polluting gas power stations, which are more expensive than cleaner alternatives. By 2030, new unabated gas power could cost twice as much as demand response and other clean flexible technologies.

In this briefing we argue that a new task force to deploy clean flexible power is likely to be the cheapest way to meet the UK’s energy goals.