The paper, led by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), outlines evidence needs across Government and invites collaboration from academia, industry and the public sector. It follows five national missions and positions clean energy as central to energy security, affordability and economic growth.
The ARI frames two pillars for delivery: achieving a largely low-carbon electricity system by 2030 and accelerating progress to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. It highlights priority technologies and approaches, including offshore and onshore wind, solar, nuclear, long-duration energy storage, hydrogen, and carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS), alongside digital tools to enable a smarter, more flexible grid. An updated plan for the “accelerate to net zero” pillar is due later in October, with a public participation strategy to follow. Research needs are organised across sectors—power, industry, heat and buildings, transport, and agriculture/land use—and cross-cutting enablers such as standards, regulation, skills and manufacturing. The document identifies nine priority R\&D challenges, covering flexible demand, storage, dispatchable low-carbon power, floating offshore wind, the circular economy and electrification, negative emissions, low-carbon fuels, food systems, and the social and behavioural aspects of the transition.
DESNZ says the framework is designed to guide funding and policy, support coordination across departments and agencies, and align UK capabilities with international collaboration. The paper links clean energy R\&D to wider outcomes, including economic growth, health benefits from cleaner air and warmer homes, and resilience to climate risks, while noting that a proportion of required emissions reductions depends on technologies not yet commercialised. You can see the full document here