Q3 2018 | Electric Insights

Headlines

by Dr Iain Staffell – Imperial College London

This quarter, Britain’s power system hit a major green milestone that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago.

The installed capacity of renewables has overtaken that of all fossil-fuelled technologies combined. A third of Britain’s coal, gas and oil capacity has retired over the last five years, while the capacity of wind, solar, biomass, hydro and other renewables has tripled (see Article 1). Now standing at a combined 42 GW, renewables now dominate Britain’s electricity generating infrastructure.

by Dr Iain Staffell – Imperial College London

Britain’s power system is slowly but surely walking away from fossil fuels, and this quarter saw a major milestone on the journey.

At the start of this decade, Britain had seven times more generating capacity from coal, oil and gas as it had from renewables.But since their peak, 40% of Britain’s fossil-fuelled plants have retired as they reached the end of their lives or became uneconomical, meaning Britain now has just 41.2 GW of fossil capacity. Meanwhile, renewable capacity has grown six-fold since the start of the decade; so wind, solar, biomass, hydro and waste¹ now stand together at 41.9 GW of capacity, outstripping fossil plants for the first time².

by Dr Iain Staffell – Imperial College London

10-year high gas prices¹ have prompted a resurgence in coal-fired power across Britain – and with it a 15% increase in carbon emissions from electricity generation.

If coal-fired electricity remains cheaper than gas-fired (as analysts predict), we could see the first year-on-year rise in carbon emissions from Britain’s power sector in six years. This highlights the importance of retaining a strong carbon price if we are to ensure the successful decarbonisation of the power system is not reversed.

Wholesale power prices hit a 10-year high

by Dr Iain Staffell – Imperial College London

Power prices have risen by 50% in the last year due to the rising cost of gas and carbon emissions, and uncertainty around Brexit weakening the pound.

Electricity on the day-ahead market averaged £60/MWh over the quarter, up from £42/MWh this time last year. Rather than seeing extreme price spikes as in previous years or during specific events such as the Beast from the East, day-in day-out baseload prices have been creeping up as the year progresses. Consumers may see price rises going into the winter, giving the opportunity to switch to a cheaper, and greener, tariff.

by Dr Iain Staffell – Imperial College London

Not only has the cost of generating electricity been rising, the cost of balancing the system has also hit a 10-year high.

The day-to-day costs of running the transmission system, which National Grid passes on to all generators and consumers (but not to interconnectors), has doubled over the last four years.
Balancing the power system cost £3.8m per day over the quarter, adding 6% to wholesale prices. On three days this quarter, the cost of keeping the system stable exceeded £10 million per day. This daily cost has been gradually increasing since 2010, but the cost this quarter was one-sixth higher than the previous record (2017 Q3).

by Dr Iain Staffell – Imperial College London

Low-carbon sources reached an all-time record by producing over 60% of Britain’s electricity in September.

Over the quarter they averaged 57%, also a new record.

Q3 2018 report

Headlines

This quarter, Britain’s power system hit a major green milestone that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago.

Renewables leapfrog fossil capacity

Britain’s power system is slowly but surely walking away from fossil fuels, and this quarter saw a major milestone on the journey.

Coal comeback pushes up UK’s carbon emissions

10-year high gas prices¹ have prompted a resurgence in coal-fired power across Britain – and with it a 15% increase in carbon emissions from electricity generation.

Wholesale power prices hit a 10-year high

Power prices have risen by 50% in the last year due to the rising cost of gas and carbon emissions, and uncertainty around Brexit weakening the pound.

The cost of staying in balance

Not only has the cost of generating electricity been rising, the cost of balancing the system has also hit a 10-year high.

Capacity and production statistics

Low-carbon sources reached an all-time record by producing over 60% of Britain’s electricity in September.

Live Grid Data

Headlines

This quarter, Britain’s power system hit a major green milestone that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago.

Renewables leapfrog fossil capacity

Britain’s power system is slowly but surely walking away from fossil fuels, and this quarter saw a major milestone on the journey.

Coal comeback pushes up UK’s carbon emissions

10-year high gas prices1 have prompted a resurgence in coal-fired power across Britain – and with it a 15% increase in carbon emissions from electricity generation.

Wholesale power prices hit a 10-year high

Power prices have risen by 50% in the last year due to the rising cost of gas and carbon emissions, and uncertainty around Brexit weakening the pound.

The cost of staying in balance

Not only has the cost of generating electricity been rising, the cost of balancing the system has also hit a 10-year high.

Capacity and production statistics

Low-carbon sources reached an all-time record by producing over 60% of Britain’s electricity in September.

Live Grid Data

10-year high gas prices¹ have prompted a resurgence in coal-fired power across Britain – and with it a 15% increase in carbon emissions from electricity generation.