Birthplace of the Industrial Revolution, Britain is this week shutting down its last coal plant. Starting Tuesday, its power grid will be permanently coal-free.
More than 100 years ago, in 1882, the world’s first coal plant opened in London, and for most of the last century, coal reigned as the leading source of power in the U.K. That changed in the 1990s, when coal began to lose ground to natural gas. Over the last decade, it was renewable power that finally edged coal off the grid.
In 2012, renewables generated 6 percent of Britain’s electricity, while coal generated 40 percent, according to energy think tank Ember. Last year, renewables — mostly wind — supplied 34 percent. Going forward, coal will supply none.
Analysts say that, in addition to renewables, falling demand helped kill coal. Rising energy costs, paired with more efficient home appliances, have led to a drop in electricity use. Analysts also credit policies that raised the priced of coal and spurred the development of renewables.
“The era of coal-free power begins,” said Frankie Mayo, of Ember. “The U.K. 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.”
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