By Keith Anderson,
Chief Executive, ScottishPower

With just 100 days to go arguably the most important global event the UK has ever hosted, it’s important to remember that our work to achieve net zero emissions in our communities will not stop when COP26 (the United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties) begins in Glasgow.

At ScottishPower, we are already investing a total of £10bn over five years - £6 million every working day – to power a greener future for everyone living and working in the UK.

That means building more windfarms and developing new renewables technologies that work alongside wind – like battery storage and solar panels – so we can meet the growing demand for more clean green electricity as we head towards an all-electric future.

It means ensuring the poles, cables and wires that form the arteries and veins of the electricity system are fit for purpose and able to cope with the increased demands of a cleaner and greener future supported by electric transport and heat.

And it means making all of this readily available, accessible and affordable for people, homes and businesses in our towns and cities, with electric vehicle chargers on our streets, smart meters and heat pumps in our homes, and clean electricity on hand as and when we need it.

The UK Government has set an ambitious target of achieving net zero emissions by 2050 (2045 has been set by the government in Scotland). To achieve that we already know the UK needs to quadruple renewable generation over the next 30 years and just continuing to build more windfarms won’t be enough. That’s why we’re continuing to innovate and do things differently to produce the increased green energy we all need.

Much of our onshore development is now focused on renewable energy developments – co-locating technologies in hybrid parks that bring together wind power, solar power and energy storage.

With COP on the horizon, there’s a real buzz in our company right now as we look at what lies ahead. It’s taken 25 years for us to develop and build the level of renewable power we currently have – and we recently announced our intention to double that in just 5 years.

That’s fast-tracking clean, green energy to close to millions of homes and businesses. That for me is where the opportunity with COP lies, showing the world what we’ve done but also shouting about what we are capable of.

The reality is today’s actions really will make a difference to all our tomorrows.