Attractiveness that’s more than skin-deep: why the smart money still backs batteries in Great Britain
Despite softer near-term returns, structural strengths make GB one of Europe’s most attractive battery markets.
4 September 2025
Battery energy storage projects that are going into commercial operation in 2026, in Great Britain (GB), are expected to achieve lower returns compared to similar projects in Germany and several other European markets. But returns for battery storage in GB remain profitable, despite a decline compared to the peak years of 2021 and 2022, when returns were boosted by pre-saturation frequency response gross margins.
Yet returns alone don’t tell the full story. GB’s utility scale in-front-of-the-meter battery storage market continues to offer deep structural advantages: innovative yet mature market access ecosystem, clear policy intent, evolving ancillary services, a well-defined development and connection pipeline, and a range of financing options. Developers and investors that know how to capture locational upside, cost advantages, and get the timing and duration right, can outperform.
In this article, we explore why GB remains an attractive battery storage market – not just on a spreadsheet, but in substance. For those looking to build, acquire, or finance BESS in GB, the attractiveness of the opportunity is more than skin-deep. Looking ahead: While this piece focuses on GB, it also serves as a preview of some of the themes and will be central to our Battery Energy Storage Market Scanning Report, available in September. The report will apply a consistent framework to evaluate and rank major global BESS markets by attractiveness, providing investors and developers with a truly comparative view across geographies.
Read this article to understand what makes GB an attractive market, considering:
1. Is ancillary services market saturation already behind us?
2. An innovative yet mature market access ecosystem
3. Policy clarity
4. A strategic plan for connections
5. A pipeline built for scale
6. Diversity of financing
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