From 2024 the United Kingdom will no longer use coal to generate electricity

London, June 30 - Neftegaz.RU. The UK will end the use of coal in generating electricity by October 1, 2024, a year earlier than it had planned, the government announced today.

The move is part of ambitious government commitments to transition away from fossil fuels and decarbonise the power sector in order to eliminate contributions to climate change by 2050.
In 2020, coal represented 1.8 % of the UK’s mix to generate electricity as compared to 40 % nearly a decade ago

Energy and Climate Change Minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan said:

• Coal powered the industrial revolution 200 years ago, but now is the time for radical action to completely eliminate this dirty fuel from our energy system
• Today we’re sending a clear signal around the world that the UK is leading the way in consigning coal power to the history books and that we’re serious about decarbonising our power system so we can meet our ambitious, world-leading climate targets
• The UK’s net zero future will be powered by renewables, and it is this technology that will drive the green industrial revolution and create new jobs across the country

Britain, which is hosting the COP26 summit in Glasgow this year, is leading the world in the race to ditch coal, and urging other nations to name a date for following suit.
Trevelyan said:

• Britain is focused on encouraging other countries, big or small, I don't mind, all of them to set a path to come away from coal-fired electricity generation

The UK went 5,000 hours without coal-fired electricity in 2020, and earlier this year broke a new wind power record.
The rise in the use of renewables thanks to competition, free enterprise and subsidies to kick start new technologies has in turn helped to drive down the cost of green energy, with coal power now more expensive in most countries.