Copper from unused electricals could help power UK renewables boom

Stuart Stone
clock • 5 min read
Credit: Recycle Your Electricals
Image:

Credit: Recycle Your Electricals

Unused electrical items could provide almost a third of the copper needed by new wind and solar farms by 2030

An estimated 1.3 billion unused or binned electrical items, including 627 million cables, could help tackle a looming copper supply crunch that threatens to hamper the roll out of electric vehicles (EVs),...

To continue reading this article...

Join BusinessGreen

In just a few clicks you can start your free BusinessGreen Lite membership for 12 months, providing you access to:

  • Three complimentary articles per month covering the latest real-time news, analysis, and opinion from Europe’s leading source of information on the Green economy and business
  • Receive important and breaking news stories via our daily news alert
  • Our weekly newsletter with the best of the week’s green business news and analysis

Join now

 

Already a BusinessGreen member?

Login

Stuart Stone
Author spotlight

Stuart Stone

View profile
More from Stuart Stone

'A giant step backward': Trump administration axes limits on coal and gas power plant pollution

Bristol becomes first UK city to ban 'ultra-fast fashion' ads

More on Waste

Pressure mounts on government to provide 'clear sense of direction' for circular economy
Waste

Pressure mounts on government to provide 'clear sense of direction' for circular economy

Waste industry professionals have called on the government to urgently provide a clearer, long-term strategy as they continue to wait for long-delayed Circular Economy Growth Plan

Michael Holder
Michael Holder
clock 14 September 2026 • 4 min read
Mondelez cuts around 2,200 tonnes of plastic a year from biscuit packaging
Waste

Mondelez cuts around 2,200 tonnes of plastic a year from biscuit packaging

Rigid plastic trays used to package more than 115 products, including Cadbury Crunchy Melts and Chocolate Chip Cookies, replaced with FSC-certified paper alternative

Stuart Stone
Stuart Stone
clock 08 September 2026 • 3 min read
Plastic Overshoot Day: Close to 72 million tonnes of plastic will leak into nature this year
Waste

Plastic Overshoot Day: Close to 72 million tonnes of plastic will leak into nature this year

More than 46,000 tonnes of microplastics and over 1,000 tonnes of chemical additives will find their way into the UK’s waterways this year, Earth Action warns

Stuart Stone
Stuart Stone
clock 07 September 2026 • 5 min read