UK to use more renewable than coal power for the first time

The UK is set to use more energy sourced from renewable projects than coal in 2019, marking the first year this has happened.

According to data recently released by the National Grid, coal and gas-fired power contributed to 46.7% of the nation’s electricity between January and May this year.

Renewable sources – such as wind, solar, nuclear, and hydropower – provided 47.9% of the UK’s energy.

These figures are expected to continue for the rest of the year, with clean energy to provide an even share to the grid.

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“We take our responsibility to run the UK’s electricity and gas energy systems, in accordance with our licence obligations, extremely seriously and we seek to maintain the integrity of these systems while keeping energy costs down for UK homes and businesses,” stated John Pettigrew, CEO of th National Grid.

“But as we look to the future, we are proud to champion world-leading feats of British engineering as we move to a net-zero power grid. The interconnectors that connect our electricity grid into Norway’s hydropower are part of this story, as is having the know-how to bring renewable generation onstream to complement conventional sources of generating power.”