Why the UK wind industry needs circularity

Much has been written about the short term impact of the war in Iran and the havoc it’s wreaking on fuel prices. But Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency, is quite certain what the long term impact will be. It will be the end of the oil era, he says: “The vase is broken, the damage is done – it will be very difficult to put the pieces back together. This will have permanent consequences for the global energy markets for years to come.”

That helps to vindicate the UK’s urgent push for clean power, with Ed Miliband explaining in a recent speech that the government “will double down, not back down” in the face of a “more uncertain and insecure world”.

He went on to explain what makes doubling down possible: “Unlike the twin fossil fuel shocks of the 1970s, there is now a compelling alternative in the form of clean energy. An alternative that cannot be disrupted by foreign wars because it comes from our own wind, and nuclear resources.”

The UK should build the supply chain resilience of its wind industry
The first part of Ed Miliband’s statement is true enough, although, even in the 70s, the OPEC oil crisis prompted some, like Sweden, which lacked its own fossil fuel reserves, to pursue clean alternatives. The Swedish government subsidised heat pumps, which now power around half of the country’s homes (compared to just two per cent in the UK in 2024).

The second part of his statement is currently true, too, particularly when it comes to the renewable energy installations already up and running. But, because the renewables industry currently relies on globally traded products and materials, including critical minerals, the UK will need to build up its domestic supply chain resilience in future to ensure the “alternative cannot be disrupted” in the long term.

Materials and parts can be used and reused
Again from the IEA, the Global critical minerals outlook 2025 suggests every major energy supply chain has at least one weakness putting it at risk. While it’s a global problem, the UK is particularly exposed because it is over 90 per cent reliant on imports of 32 of the 34 critical minerals (for the economy in general, though many are used in renewables). Crucially, it tends to use and then lose them again as they are exported as waste once finished with, keeping the country in the clutches of volatile international markets.

But, unlike fuels, which are burnt once and then vanish into the atmosphere as polluting global warming gases, the materials, parts an infrastructure needed to harness renewable energy can be kept in use for a very long time, and in some cases infinitely, through lifetime extension measures, reuse, remanufacturing and recycling. In other words, through a circular economy.

We can do more to bring economic benefits to the UK
Over the past year, we’ve been engaged in the ‘Regulations to Ensure Sustainable Circular Use at End-of-life for Wind’ (RESCUE) project, which has looked at how to embed greater circularity of the valuable materials needed to support and grow the wind industry, which is expected to remain the dominant source of renewable energy in the UK.

Led by the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult, in partnership with the Universities of Leeds, the West of England and Birmingham, as well as EMR and Ionic Technologies, this project has collaborated with more than 270 people in over 100 organisations.

The project’s message is clear: the government must do more to embed circular practices to help grow the UK’s wind industry. Although the country is increasingly benefiting from wind power, it isn’t retaining the longer term industrial and security benefits of this growth. Most of the parts and infrastructure used are imported because the UK lacks enough domestic capacity to manufacture many of the materials and parts for turbines.

Even before the last election, the UK was one of the biggest buyers of offshore wind technology in the world. The government’s current clean power mission will see the country double onshore wind and triple offshore wind by 2030 to protect our energy security. Given the UK’s reliance on imports,

Because the UK was an early mover on wind, it has a huge amount of infrastructure in operation, some of which is now approaching the end of its life. This is a good position from which to develop a more circular approach.

Given limited UK processing and primary manufacturing capacity, it makes sense to focus on the ‘inner circles’ of a circular economy, ie reuse, remanufacturing and repair, rather than just recycling, wherever possible to maintain the greatest value and develop a market for secondary parts and whole turbines as well as materials.

Analysis for the Coalition for Wind Industry Circularity has shown that remanufacturing just ten components for wind turbines with well established supply chains over the next ten years could create a UK market worth £9.6 billion.

The Circular Economy Roadmap for Clean Energy Industries, due later this year, and the Energy Independence Bill, should both be used as opportunities to ensure we reduce exposure to volatile supply chains by limiting our need for new products and materials and building up the right domestic industries. This can avoid future international disruption or competition for materials getting in the way of UK ambitions.

No matter how much the sun shines or the wind blows, long term energy security and independence in the UK is simply impossible without more circularity.