UK closes last coal power plant in 142 years

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Britain's last coal-fired power station, Ratcliffe-on-Sower power station near Nottingham, will end operations on Monday.

Britain will soon stop burning coal to generate electricity. This will end Britain's 142-year dependence on fossil fuels.

The country's last coal-fired power station at Ratcliffe-on-Soar came online on Monday after being in operation since 1967.

This is an important milestone in the country's ambitions to reduce its contribution to climate change. Coal is the dirtiest fossil fuel, emitting the most greenhouse gases when burned.

“As a nation, we owe a debt of gratitude to generations,” said Energy Secretary Michael Shanks.

The UK was the birthplace of coal-fired power generation, and from tomorrow it will become the first major economy to abandon it.

Lord Deven, the country's longest-serving environment secretary, said: “It is a truly remarkable day because Britain has finally powered its industrial revolution with coal.”

The world's first coal-fired power station, the Holborn Viaduct power station, was built in London in 1882 by inventor Thomas Edison, bringing light to the streets of the capital.

Oxford Science Archive/Getty Images

Thomas Edison holding a dynamo, a generator used to produce electric lights, photographed in 1882.

From that point until the first half of the 20th century, coal provided almost all of Britain's electricity, powering homes and businesses.

Although coal began to be taken out of the power mix by gas in the early 1990s, it remained an important component of the UK power grid for the next two decades.

In 2012 it still produced 39% of the UK's electricity.

growth of renewable energy

But the science of climate change was growing. It has become clear that the world's greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced and coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel, is a key target.

In 2008, the UK set its first legally binding climate targets, and in 2015 Amber Rudd, then energy and climate change secretary, told the world that the UK would phase out coal power within the next decade.

Dave Jones, global insight director at independent energy think tank Ember, said this had really helped “kick-start” the demise of coal by giving the industry a clear direction.

But it also showed leadership and set a standard for other countries to follow, according to Lord Deven.

“I think it made a big difference, because we need someone to say, ‘Hey, they did it, why can’t we?’” he said.

In 2010, renewable energy generated just 7% of the UK's electricity. In the first half of 2024, this figure rose to more than 50%, setting a new record.

The rapid growth of green power has meant that we may be able to turn off coal completely for a short period of time, with 2017 seeing our first coal-free day.

The growth of renewable energy has been so successful that the target date for the end of coal power has been brought forward by a year, with Ratcliffe-on-Soar due to close on Monday.

Chris Smith has worked in the plant's Environmental and Chemicals team for 28 years. She said: “It is a very important day. The plant has always been running and we have always done our best to keep it that way…. It is a very sad moment.”

Lord Deben worked under former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's government when many of Britain's coal mines closed and thousands of workers lost their jobs. He said workers currently working in the fossil fuel industry should learn a lesson from this.

“I am particularly interested in the way this government, and previous governments, have tried to ensure that many of the new green jobs are moving to places hit hard by the changes.

“So in the North Sea oil patch, this is where we need to do carbon capture and storage, and this is where we need to deploy wind and solar power,” he said.

Challenges ahead

Coal is a very polluting energy source, but the advantage of coal is that it is always available, unlike wind or solar, which are limited by weather conditions.

Kayte O'Neill, chief operating officer of the Energy System Operator, the body that oversees the UK's electricity system, said: “A lot of innovation is needed to ensure the stability of the grid, and in a safe way.”

An important technology that provides reliability, Kayte O'Neill said, is battery technology.

Dr Sylwia Walus, research program manager at the Faraday Institution, said significant advances had been made in battery science.

“There is always room for new technologies, but these days there is more focus on how we can produce them more sustainably and cheaper,” she said.

To achieve this, the UK will need to become more independent from China in producing its own batteries and bringing in skilled workers to do so, she explained.

Additional reporting by Miho Tanaka and Justin Rowlatt

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