UK wind turbines, solar farms and other renewable sources of energy generated more electricity this summer than coal and gas power stations, marking the first quarter in history that renewables have eclipsed fossil fuels in the country.
In a significant milestone, an analysis by climate website聽 found that renewables generated 29.5 terawatt-hours across July to September, versus 29.1 TWh from fossil fuels.
鈥淚t is no longer a question of whether renewables can form the backbone of the UK grid, generating more electricity than any other source 鈥� it is a question of when they get there and how quickly and how far they continue to expand beyond that. That in itself is a massive change,鈥� says Simon Evans at Carbon Brief.
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鈥淭his milestone highlights the fact that the UK鈥檚 electricity system is in the midst of a stunning transformation, which is only set to continue,鈥� he says.
Over the period, 40 per cent of UK electricity generation came from renewables. Half of that amount came from wind farms and the rest was from biomass, solar and hydropower. By comparison, gas power stations provided 38 per cent of electricity, with coal supplying just 1 per cent. Nuclear鈥檚 share was around 20 per cent.
The speed at which renewables have come to rival and 鈥� during summer months when energy demand is lower 鈥� outstrip fossil fuels in the UK has been remarkably fast. A decade ago, renewables supplied just 6.7 per cent of electricity. Since 2010, electricity generation from renewables has quadrupled.
Most of the growth has been from onshore windfarms and, in the past two years, new offshore windfarms that span hundreds of square kilometres, such as the . In the process, coal power has been almost entirely squeezed off the grid. The government has backed renewables with subsidies while , in order to help meet its binding carbon targets.
However, the story of how renewable sources overtook fossil fuels also involves the fall in demand for electricity in the UK. Due to increasingly energy efficient appliances and lighting, as well as the changing economic make-up of the UK, .
On 10 October, National Grid, which runs the UK鈥檚 electricity transmission network, that it expects overall electricity demand to be lower this winter than last year. The company also expects gas demand for electricity generation to be lower due to renewables.
The Carbon Brief figures are based on a preliminary analysis of government and industry data. Official figures are due in coming months.
