Britain has gone Coal free for a record two months

Significant landmark?

At midnight on June 10th, the country went a full two months without drawing electricity from any of the UK’s coal-fired power stations.

According to the National Grid, the landmark has been achieved due to a combination of the 15-20% plunge in demand for energy from manufacturing and heavy industry due to the lockdown and an increase in the use of renewable energy sources.

As lockdown began and energy demand dried up virtually overnight, it was Britain’s remaining coal-fired power stations that were the first to be taken offline with the last one shutting down at midnight on the 9th of April. These remaining coal-fired stations are all marked for closure in the next five years.

“The fact is that the fuel (coal) is simply not needed in a modern energy system. At the same time, the surge in renewable generation and extensive plans to expand the nation’s fleet of cheap and clean energy sources show that there will only be one direction from here. Recent tests of an increasingly flexible energy system during sunny bank holidays in lockdown, all of which have been dealt with without issue, show that the grid is ready to move quicker than many thought possible. The question is now whether policymakers keep pace with this to encourage further investment into clean energy sources,” said Jess Ralston, an analyst at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) think tank.

Read more: UK and EU break coal-free electricity records during Coronavirus lockdown

The Energy Mix

According to National Grid, the energy mix for the UK has seen rapid change with renewable sources of power now making up 28% of all energy production on average.

Wind energy produced 15.87% and Solar produced 11.45% of the energy in Britain last month thanks to a combination of blustery weather at the start of May and sustained periods of glorious sunshine in the latter half.

Eco-friendly Biomass meanwhile produced 8.75% and Nuclear energy (which doesn’t produce any greenhouse gas emissions) produced 23% of the total energy mix.

“So far this year renewables have generated more electricity than fossil fuels and that's never happened before. With gas also in decline, there's a real chance that renewables will overtake fossil fuels in 2020 as a whole,” said Dr Simon Evans of Carbon Brief.

Read more: UK Energy Mix – The Types of production

A global trend?

The UK government’s plan to close all coal power stations by 2024 appears to be on track following this new record but their target of hitting net-zero emissions remains in question.

Coal used to make up 40% of Britain’s energy production but since the first coal free day was recorded in 2017 this figure has been steadily falling.  

It’s not just the UK that has seen a sharp decline in coal energy usage. According to the International Energy Agency’s 2019 World Energy Balances data, coal use is on the decline across Europe and the United States.

In Asia, however, coal is still a dominant part of the energy mix with China continuing to build new coal-fired power stations.

The global energy mix is now: 28% Coal, 32% Oil, Natural gas 22%, Biofuels 9%, Nuclear 5%, Hydro 2% and wind and solar at just 1%.

Despite fossil fuels remaining dominant on a global scale, the IEA is forecasting a fivefold increase in the use of solar power and a threefold increase in wind power consumption by 2040. 

Renewable infrastructure a top priority 

In related news, a new poll carried out by YouGov has shown that renewable energy infrastructure is a top priority by the UK public.

The survey asked 2000 people what was most important for national infrastructure resulting in 62% saying that more investment in renewable energy was very important.

Surprisingly, the need for renewables came comfortably ahead of the need for improved roads, rail, and general energy production. Investment in new airports was the least popular.

"The UK has extensive infrastructure ambitions and now, even amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, there is still a strong case for infrastructure investment as the economy looks to get back on track and prepare for the future. The current lockdown means that international travel is all but impossible, however, the commitment to sustainability and the environment remains firm,” said Ted Frith, COO at GLIL Infrastructure the company that commissioned the survey.

Further Reading 

Energy Sector entering a new phase of COVID-19 crisis

Government to give Energy suppliers temporary relief on increases to CfD charges

Energy Suppliers urge the UK Government to deliver a green Covid-19 recovery

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