2024-10-01 15:55:05
The last coal-fired power station in the UK ended its operation on 30 September.
As Deputy Energy Minister Michael Shanks noted, this event occurred 142 years after the opening of the first coal power plant in the country, Day.Az reports.
“Given that coal has been the backbone of Britain’s energy power, this is a truly remarkable day,” former Environment Secretary (1993-1997) and member of the House of Lords John Gummer told the BBC.
The power station in Ratcliffe-on-Soar, Nottinghamshire, which had been operating since 1968, closed a year ahead of schedule. Thus, the UK became the first member of the Group of Seven (G7) to completely abandon coal in electricity generation. Germany plans to do this by 2038, Canada by 2030, and Italy by the end of 2025, excluding the island of Sardinia.
According to the BBC, until the early 90s of the last century, up to 75% of the kingdom’s electricity was generated by coal plants. Until the mid-2010s, this figure dropped to 35%, after which a sharp decline began. A complete cessation of coal-fired power generation was announced by the government in 2017 after lengthy consultations. Last year, the UK met 34.7% of its electricity needs from gas-fired power stations, 32.8% from renewable sources (wind and solar) and 13.8% from nuclear power.
Despite aggressive efforts by authorities to transition to green energy, with a focus on nuclear and wind power, experts warn of possible capacity shortages in the early 2030s due to the impending decommissioning of existing nuclear power plants that are already running out of resources.
The world’s first coal-fired power station was launched in the UK in 1882 and was built by American inventor Thomas Edison in the Holborn area of London to light the streets.