New annual renewable energy records demonstrate UK’s commitment to provide cheap clean power

The annual figures, published in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s quarterly Energy Trends report, show that wind provided a record 20% of the UK’s power last year (9.9% from onshore wind and 9.9% from offshore wind). 

Wind also generated record annual quantities of power, with onshore and offshore each providing 32 terawatt hours (TWh). The total annual amount of electricity generated from all sources was 324 TWh. The Government says falls in generation by coal and nuclear were offset by increases in renewables.

Low carbon generation (renewables and nuclear) reached a record 54.2%, with nuclear providing 17.4% last year. Meanwhile gas generated 40.9% and coal dropped to 2.1%.

Today’s figures also show that in 2019 UK greenhouse gas emissions were 45.2% lower than in 1990 and 3.6% lower than 2018. The Government said this mainly due to changes in the fuel mix used for electricity generation, away from coal and towards renewables.

RenewableUK’s Deputy Chief Executive Melanie Onn said: “Today’s record-breaking figures show just how radically the UK’s energy system is changing, with low-cost renewables at the vanguard. This will continue as we build a modern energy system, moving away from fossil fuels to reach net zero emissions as fast as possible. As well as wind, we’ll use innovative new technologies like renewable hydrogen and marine power, and we’ll scale up battery storage. Low-cost renewables are central to the Government’s energy strategy and our sector will grow rapidly in the years ahead, as our domestic supply chain expands and we continue to seize multi-billion pound export opportunities around the world”.

BEIS also released statistics today covering the final 3 months of 2019, showing that wind set a new quarterly record by generating 22.3% of UK electricity (offshore set a new record of 10.2TWh). Renewables overall provided 37.4% (a record amount of 32.5TWh).