Is Portsmouth ready for net zero? New study reveals UK ranking
Reaching net zero is no longer a distant ambition for the UK, it’s an urgent national priority that is reshaping how cities operate, build, and grow. But while the conversation often focuses on cutting emissions, the reality on the ground is far more complex. From electric vehicle infrastructure to energy consumption and renewable uptake, some areas are clearly better equipped than others to make the transition.
The research, conducted by Karas Plating, builds a composite index that combines environmental pressure with decarbonisation capacity. It assesses emissions density, electric vehicle charging provision, solar adoption, household waste, energy consumption, and the share of employment in carbon-intensive industries. Each indicator is normalised and weighted to produce a final net zero readiness score out of 100, allowing cities of very different sizes and structures to be compared on a consistent basis.
Portsmouth ranks 42nd out of 113 in this UK-wide net zero and sustainability study, with a total score of 74.41, placing it in the upper-middle tier nationally.
The city shows a relatively mixed industrial and emissions profile. The share of employment in carbon-intensive sectors is 438.78, while emissions density sits at 11.1 kt CO₂e per km², suggesting moderate environmental pressure compared with both higher- and lower-ranking cities.
On green infrastructure, Portsmouth records 27.4 electric vehicle charging devices per 100,000 people and a solar panel installation rate of 118.62, indicating steady but not leading progress in low-carbon technology adoption. These figures suggest gradual uptake rather than rapid transformation.
Resource and energy indicators show collected household waste at 334.5 kg per person and annual energy consumption of 736.1 GWh per dwelling. Overall, Portsmouth’s position reflects a city that is making measurable progress toward net zero, but still sits behind the strongest-performing urban areas in terms of infrastructure scale and emissions reduction momentum.
At the other end of the scale, cities such as London and a cluster of large industrial centres show significantly weaker net zero readiness scores, reflecting challenges linked to higher energy demand, dense emissions profiles, and in some cases limited renewable penetration relative to population size.
London, for example, records a comparatively low overall score of 39.52, alongside very high household energy consumption of 34,800.4 GWh-equivalent, illustrating the scale effect of large metropolitan systems despite stronger infrastructure in areas such as EV charging (48.9 per 100,000 people). Other lower-ranked cities, including industrial hubs across the Midlands and North, also tend to combine higher emissions intensity with weaker renewable uptake and more limited efficiency improvements, widening the gap with top-performing cities.
List of the cities most ready for net zero:
Rank City
1 Oxford
2 Salford
3 St Albans
4 Watford
5 Brighton and Hove
6 Basingstoke
7 Colchester
8 Bristol
9 Bracknell
10 Newcastle upon Tyne
11 Preston
12 Manchester
13 City of Edinburgh
14 Cambridge
15 Exeter
16 Maidstone
17 Milton Keynes
18 Guildford
19 Lancaster
20 Brentwood