David Mathieson and Nazar Soofi write about rising energy costs triggering renewables installation

As the price of Brent crude – and subsequently the cost of energy – rises, businesses are facing another rise in operating costs. But could this result in businesses generating their own energy to control costs? Writing for Food Manufacture, David Mathieson, managing director in Funding and Insurance at BTG, and Nazar Soofi, director and head of sustainability at BTG Eddisons ask the question.

Even before the latest energy crisis businesses were investing in renewables to tackle volatile energy costs. In 2025, 7.78GW of solar projects were approved, a rise on the prior high of 5.72GW in the previous year. This is in stark contrast to just 0.37GW in 2019.

The same acceleration in approvals has been seen in battery installations with more than 35GW of storage approved in 2025. This data suggests the move for businesses towards renewables is well underway.

Nazar and David note that this trend is well developed and that even businesses experiencing some distress are exploring this route. Businesses are increasingly seeing that renewables are no longer an ESG measure, but a financial decision and there are funding and installations options to help.

Read the full article on Food Manufacture