LONDON (CU)_Great Britain recorded its greenest day ever on Monday (5 April), as windy weather and sunshine caused a surge in renewable energy in the country.
With solar farms and wind turbines generating 60 per cent of all electricity in England, Scotland and Wales, the power plants produced only 39g of carbon dioxide for every kilowatt-hour of electricity, which is the lowest carbon intensity recorded since National Grid records began in 1935.
Moreover, 16 per cent of the electricity mix were generated by UK’s nuclear reactors, which means nearly 80 per cent of the grid was powered from low-carbon sources.
The surge in low-carbon power, coupled with a lower than average demand for electricity on the bank holiday, meant that gas-fired power in the country dropped to 10 per cent of the electricity mix.
Accordingly, the carbon intensity of the electricity system plunged to its lowest, smashing the grid’s previous record of 46g in May last year.
“It’s an exciting time, and the progress we’re seeing with these records underlines the significant strides we’re taking towards our ambition of being able to operate the system carbon free by 2025,” Fintan Slye, a director at the system operator at National Grid, said.
He said that the latest record is a testimony to the transformation of Britain’s energy system “at an astonishing rate” as the country has started moving away from fossil fuel and harnessing renewable energy sources.
Over the last year, the United Kingdom’s electricity emissions fell sharply on account of the slump in demand for electricity from hotels, restaurants and office blocks, which were forced to remain shut due to the pandemic. However, despite the gradual reopening of the economy in the recent days, the demand for electricity remained 5 per cent lower than usual last month.
Last month, gas-fired power plants made up 39 per cent of Britain’s electricity mix, while wind and solar power made up only 24 per cent and 4 per cent respectively. Moreover, the carbon intensity in March was 185g of CO2/kWh.
Over the last year, the Coronavirus lockdown in particular, led to a significant collapse in demand for electricity, which paved the way for a drop in the carbon intensity to 181g of CO₂/kWh. However, United Kingdom’s climate targets require the electricity system to slash its carbon intensity to around 50g of CO2/kWh by 2030, 10g of CO2/kWh by 2035, and 2g of CO2/kWh by 2050.
According to Slye, this recent progress underlines the significant efforts initiated towards the ambition of being able to operate the system carbon free by 2025.
