With rise of clean energy sources, UK's last coal plant to shut on September 30

UK's power sector has undergone a rapid transition, reducing coal's share of generation from 39 per cent in 2012 to 0 per cent in October 2024.

In Short

• UK's power sector emissions fall by 74 per cent in 2012-2024
• Coal's share in emissions dropped from 39 per cent to 0 per cent
• Coal power mainly replaced by wind and solar energy in UK

In a landmark moment for the UK's power sector, the last remaining coal plant, Ratcliffe-on-Soar, is set to close at midnight on September 30.

According to new analysis by the environment think tank Ember, the UK's power sector has undergone a rapid transition, reducing coal's share of generation from 39 per cent in 2012 to 0 per cent in October 2024. Over this period, power sector emissions have plummeted by 74 per cent, attributed to the rise of wind and solar energy.

"The era of coal-free power begins", stated Ember analyst Frankie Mayo. "The UK has achieved something massive, shifting its power system from a huge polluter to one where renewables are thriving, in an astonishingly short period of time".

END OF COAL ERA

The closure of Ratcliffe power station marks the end of over a century of reliance on coal power, starting with the world’s first coal-fired power station at the Edison Electric Light Station in London in 1882.

Despite a decline in the 1990s, coal still provided 39 per cent of the UK’s electricity in 2012. The coal phase-out began in earnest from 2012, mandating the closure or fuel-switching of 15 coal power plants by 2023, and making coal-free days increasingly common.

HOW UK ACHIEVED SHIFT TO CLEAN POWER

Coal power has been mainly replaced by wind and solar energy, which quadrupled their generation since 2012. Wind and solar combined rose from 6 per cent of the power mix in 2012 to 34 per cent in 2023. Wind power alone grew by 315 per cent (+62 TWh) during this period. The growth of wind and solar power, generating an additional 75 TWh since 2012, displaced an estimated 28 million tonnes of coal and avoided £2.9bn in coal costs.

Interestingly, the phase-out did not rely heavily on switching to gas. Although gas generation surged briefly from 2015 to 2016 due to economic factors, it has since declined back to 2012 levels. The coal phase-out has driven a significant drop in emissions, avoiding 880 million tonnes of carbon dioxide, equivalent to more than double the UK's total economy-wide emissions in 2023.

Ember’s report identifies five main factors behind the UK's successful shift from coal: Ambitious decarbonisation targets, a rising minimum carbon price making coal less economical, robust policy support for wind power, market reforms, and investments in grid innovation. These insights will be critical as the UK aims to achieve a fully clean power system by 2030.

"The work to build a clean power system will continue. To cut the need for expensive imported gas, to lower energy bills, and to generate clean electricity which will enable the rest of the economy to transition too", said Mayo.