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New Energy World
New Energy World embraces the whole energy industry as it connects and converges to address the decarbonisation challenge. It covers progress being made across the industry, from the dynamics under way to reduce emissions in oil and gas, through improvements to the efficiency of energy conversion and use, to cutting-edge initiatives in renewable and low carbon technologies.
New analysis has found that for the first time ever, installed wind capacity has surpassed gas in the UK, reaching 27.9 GW in June, compared to the 27.7 GW installed capacity of gas generation.
The study, from Imperial College London for Drax Electric Insights, has found that after more than a century of fossil fuels dominating the UK’s electricity grid, coal and gas power generation has plummeted at the fastest rate outside of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The report shows that output from gas-fired power stations fell by 23% in 2Q2023 compared to the same quarter last year. Output from coal, meanwhile, fell by 75% to its lowest levels on record.
Overall, carbon emissions from electricity production dropped to less than 10mn tonnes of CO2 in 2Q2023 for only the second time on record. The previous occasion was the fall in demand due to COVID-19 lockdowns, the report found.
Dr Iain Staffell, Imperial College London, said: ‘Wind power is blowing away gas and coal from Britain’s energy mix and in just a decade, we’ve gone from relying completely on the polluting fuels of the past to embracing the clean energy technologies of the future. The shift to wind as the largest power source by capacity is a clear sign of the progress we’ve made, showing countries around the world that they can decarbonise their power grids when government and industry work together.’
Great Britain now has just one remaining coal-fired power station following Drax’s decision earlier this year to permanently end use of the fuel at its plant in North Yorkshire. The final coal power plant is located at Ratcliffe-on-Soar in Nottingham and is owned by German operator Uniper.
