Headlines

by Dr Iain Staffell – Imperial College London 

2018 was another strong year for clean power production.

53% of Britain’s electricity was produced from low-carbon sources, and fossil fuel generation was down by 7% on the previous year, its 8th consecutive fall.

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What to expect in 2019

by Dr Iain Staffell – Imperial College London 

The New Year brings new challenges to Britain’s power system. 

The capacity market was unexpectedly suspended, new low-carbon capacity has stalled and no-deal Brexit may disrupt carbon prices and the operation of interconnectors. 

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GB power system records

by Dr Iain Staffell – Imperial College London 

2018 was a record-breaking year for Britain’s power system. 

A common theme in recent years has been demand falling to new lows and renewables reaching their highest ever levels. If the power system continues to be transformed, such milestones will keep on being surpassed. 

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The GB generation mix ranking

by Dr Iain Staffell – Imperial College London 

It’s all change in the ranking of Britain’s electricity mix. 

Last year, coal fell from 4th to being the 6th largest source of power, overtaken by both imports and biomass. Until 2015, Britain’s electricity generation was dominated by fossil fuels, with coal and gas as the two largest sources. They traded places depending on relative fuel prices, but then in 2016 nuclear overtook coal to become the second largest source of electricity, with wind farms taking 3rd place. 

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Capacity and production statistics

by Dr Iain Staffell – Imperial College London 

This quarter, four-fifths of Britain’s electricity came from gas, wind and nuclear power plants. 

Low-carbon generation supplied 53% of Britain’s electricity (50% from British, and 3% from French plants). 

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Live Grid Data