UK moving further away from coal power

The British power grid has seen a new record of more than three days without coal, smashing the previous record just days after it was set, National Grid has said.

In the past few days the UK has seen more than 72 hours without any coalfired power generation on the system for the first time since the 19th century.

Only last week, the British grid saw its first two-day period without using any power from the polluting fossil fuel, which the government has committed to phasing out by 2025.

A National Grid spokeswoman said: “Britain has clocked up over 72 consecutive hours without the need for coal-powered generation.

“The record comes just days after the first ever twoday period where power generated from wind and gas dominated the mix of energy meeting the needs of electricity users across England, Scotland and Wales.”

In April last year, Britain went for its first full day without coal since the 19th century, and it accounted for less than 7 per cent of the power mix in 2017, official figures show.

But experts warn tackling climate change will require weaning the UK off all fossil fuels, including gas, which still plays a major part in powering and heating the country.