Britain is the first in the G7 to get rid of coal power

On the last day of September, the UK closed the last coal-fired power plant Ratcliffe-on-Soar in Nottinghamshire. It became the first G7 country to completely abandon coal power.

The closure of the last coal-fired power plant is in line with the government’s policy of phasing out coal, which was introduced almost a decade ago.

In 2012, coal provided about 39% of the UK’s electricity. By 2019, its share was less than 2%.

The key success factors were the early announcement of the phase-out, carbon pricing, support for offshore wind power, market reforms, and investments in the power grid.

Now London has set its sights on total decarbonization of the energy system by 2030.

“Coal power used to be synonymous with industrial growth. Now, clean energy is driving the economy – not just in high-income countries, but all over the world,” said Phil MacDonald, Managing Director of Ember Think Tank.

By moving away from coal, the country has managed to avoid emitting 880 million tons of carbon since 2012, which is twice the total UK emissions for 2023. In addition, replacing coal with wind and solar energy has saved the country about £2.9 billion.