The UK’s net zero economy is no longer a distant bet, it is already supporting 1.1 million jobs and generating £105bn for the country, according to a new report.
Analysis commissioned by the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, with work by CBI Economics and The Data City, found the sector is now making a clear economic contribution across every part of the UK.
The report says workers in the net zero economy generate £119,300 in economic value per full-time job, around 1.5 times the national average. That productivity is also feeding through into pay, with net zero jobs earning an average of £43,142, 11% higher than the national average of £39,039.
The findings are a direct challenge to the argument that net zero is only a cost.
The report suggests clean energy, electric vehicles, retrofit, manufacturing and low carbon supply chains are now supporting higher-value work at a time when the wider UK economy continues to struggle with weak productivity.
It found the net zero economy directly supports 308,000 full-time jobs through the activity of net zero businesses, twice as many as the motor vehicles sector. A further 520,000 jobs are supported through supply chains and 234,000 through wider economic activity.
The sector also generated £36.7bn directly, more than the engineering and architectural sector, with total GVA reaching £105bn once supply chain and wider effects are included.
For every £1 generated by the net zero economy, a further £1.85 is created across the wider economy.
Louise Hellem, CBI Chief Economist, said: “Supporting more than a million jobs across the country, the net zero economy is already shaping lives and livelihoods in every part of the UK, from the Central belt in Scotland to industrial heartlands in Yorkshire and the communities of Wales.”
The report highlights six £1bn economic hotspots, including the Scottish Central Belt, West and North Yorkshire and North Wales and Cheshire.
Yorkshire and the Humber leads in England, with net zero activity making up 4.4% of local GVA and supporting more than 79,000 jobs.
The sector is also heavily driven by smaller firms with more than 22,700 small businesses active in the net zero economy, with SMEs making up more than 96% of firms.
Peter Chalkley, Director of the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, said: “Thousands of small businesses across the UK are the unsung heroes of this net zero economy, installing solar panels on rooves, manufacturing parts for electric cars and in doing so creating greater energy independence for the UK.”
Darren Davidson, UK Vice President for Siemens Energy, said: “In my view, there has never been a more exciting time to work in the energy sector.
“We are transforming how Britain powers homes, businesses and industry, and that means creating long-term opportunities for people with the skills, ambition and commitment to build a cleaner, more secure energy system.”
The report also points to the scale of the opportunity still ahead, with the UK’s renewable energy pipeline representing £455bn of potential investment across 262GW of capacity.
Two-thirds of that pipeline is already in active development or construction, underlining how far the sector has moved from policy ambition into real economic activity.
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