Wind was the largest source of electricity generation in the UK for the first time ever last year, accounting for 30% of total energy generated, a new report from the National Energy System Operator (NESO) has found.
According to NESO, renewables generated more than 50% of the country’s electricity for four successive quarters, from Q4 2023 to Q3 2024, a milestone that was also for the first time.
As well as wind, gas generated 26.3% of the UK’s electricity in 2024, nuclear was responsible for 14%, imports for 14.1%, biomass for 6.8%, solar for 5% and hydropower for 2%.
No more coal
The year 2024 marked the closure of Ratcliffe power station, bringing to an end the UK’s reliance on coal for generating electricity after 142 years. Coal generated just 0.6% of the total electricity in the UK last year, according to NESO.
Electricity demand fluctuated over the course of the year, hitting an annual high of 45,096MW on 15 January, and a low of 22 August, at 15,074MW.
Euro 2024 peaks
Other peaks were notable during the Euro 2024 football tournament, the operator said, with the Netherlands vs England semi-final seeing an increase in demand for electricity by 1GW at half-time, while there was also a 1.3GW increase in demand at half-time during the England vs Spain final.
‘We’re moving closer to our ambition of periods of zero-carbon operations by 2025 and hit some significant milestones on our journey last year,’ NESO said in a statement. Read more here.
Last November, UK Development Minister Anneliese Dodds emphasised the urgent need for the country to enhance its resilience to climate change. Her comments followed a high-level meeting of government and business leaders in the UK, on issues such as financing the transition to green energy, accelerating investments in climate resilience projects, and advancing the global treaty to end plastic pollution.
