Record year for wind power in Great Britain in 2024

Wind supplied extra electrical energy than ever final 12 months because the UK moved additional away from planet-warming fossil fuels to energy the nation, new information exhibits.

Wind generated almost 83 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electrical energy throughout Nice Britain (England, Wales and Scotland), up from almost 79TWh in 2023, present figures from the Nationwide Vitality System Operator (Neso), which coordinates electrical energy distribution.

Electrical energy era from main fossil gas energy stations fell to simply over 1 / 4 of the whole final 12 months as different renewable sources, resembling photo voltaic, additionally rose, together with electrical energy imports.

The federal government desires lower than 5% of electrical energy to return from polluting fossil fuels by 2030.

Neso – the federal government’s impartial system planner and operator for the vitality transition – has beforehand described the federal government’s ‘Clear Energy 2030 Motion Plan’ as “achievable” however “on the restrict of what’s possible”.

The federal government considers clear electrical energy to incorporate renewables, resembling wind, photo voltaic, hydropower and bioenergy, in addition to nuclear energy.

Collectively, these sources generated round 56% of Nice Britain’s electrical energy in 2024 – a brand new excessive, in response to preliminary Neso information that will likely be confirmed this week.

Main fossil gas era (primarily fuel) fell to 26%, whereas an additional 16% got here from imported electrical energy.

Neso information doesn’t cowl Northern Eire, which has its personal electrical energy transmission system operator, SONI.

The figures solely embody fossil gas and biomass era from main energy stations related to the primary transmission community. For these sources, Neso doesn’t embody smaller-scale operators that feed in electrical energy at a neighborhood degree, though usually these contribute a comparatively small fraction of fossil gas energy.

Because of this, authorities figures for 2024 due in March, which can have in mind all energy sources, could differ barely from Neso’s information. However the path of journey is evident.

Again in 2014, wind and photo voltaic accounted for round 10% of Nice Britain’s electrical energy. That has now risen to a few third, in response to Neso’s figures.

Over the identical interval, fossil gas era has fallen by greater than half.

That’s primarily because of a pointy fall in coal era – the dirtiest fossil gas – with the UK’s final coal power station closing in 2024. Gasoline era has additionally begun to say no.

This has helped to considerably clear up Britain’s energy era.

In 2024, every kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electrical energy generated 124g of planet-warming carbon dioxide on common – a brand new low, and down from 419g/kWh in 2014, in response to Neso.

However fuel stays a vital a part of the UK’s electrical energy combine, serving to to keep up energy provide when output from weather-dependent wind and photo voltaic sources drops.

Britain’s wind generators can generate big quantities of electrical energy when climate circumstances are proper, as proven by the darkest blue within the chart under.

On round 10 days in December alone, greater than 50% of Nice Britain’s electrical energy era got here from wind.

Nonetheless, there are after all much less windy intervals when electrical energy era from wind drops. In the long run, these gaps may very well be stuffed utilizing rising inexperienced applied sciences, resembling batteries, to retailer vitality throughout windier instances.

There may be additional incentives for individuals to make use of electrical energy throughout windy intervals, for instance by providing cheaper costs.

However for now, fuel energy stations, a prepared supply of on-demand vitality, have to be fired as much as fill the gaps. For 3 consecutive days between 11-13 December, for instance, greater than 60% of electrical energy era got here from fuel as wind output dropped.

In its plan for assembly the 2030 clear vitality goal printed final month, the federal government dedicated to preserving a reserve capability of fuel energy stations for this function.

Final month Claire Coutinho, Conservative shadow secretary of state for vitality safety, stated Labour’s “rush” to decarbonise the electrical energy system by 2030 would push up electrical energy costs and trigger extra hardship for individuals throughout Britain.

“We want low-cost, dependable vitality – not even larger payments,” she stated.