The turbines at Britain’s last coal-fired power station have spun for the final time. This is a milestone in the UK’s transition to zero-carbon electricity and ends the UK’s 142-year history of burning coal for power.
that Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station closes Outside Nottingham, the UK became the first major economy and the first G7 member to completely phase out coal. This is no less important for a country that is home to the world’s first coal-fired power plant, built in 1882.
“Today’s closure of Ratcliffe marks the end of an era and coal workers can rightly be proud of the work they do to power our country,” said Energy Secretary Michael Shanks.
“As a nation, we owe a debt of gratitude that spans generations.”
When Ratcliffe started in 1967, nearly 400,000 people were employed in the coal industry.
Ratcliffe’s was one of Britain’s largest coal-fired power plants, capable of producing 2 gigawatts of electricity, enough power for every home in the East Midlands.
The plant’s closure has been planned since 2015, when the government announced a phase-out of coal for electricity, the most polluting power source, by 2025.
But for those who have dedicated their careers there, it is not that difficult to keep the lights on.
“It’s an emotional day for me as well as the team,” said Peter O’Grady, Plant Manager at Ratcliffe.
“When I started my career 36 years ago, none of us could have imagined a future without coal power in our lifetime.
It wasn’t until the early 2000s that the science on climate change became established, when policies to actively phase out coal were introduced.
Photo: UNIPER/PA
huge carbon footprint
Ratcliffe was the first and only coal-fired power plant to be equipped with advanced “scrubbing” technology, later to remove nitrogen oxides and sulfur pollutants spewing from its smokestacks.
But there has been no affordable solution to the planet-warming carbon dioxide produced by other coal-fired power plants.
Since the blast furnaces of the world’s first coal-fired power station ignited in Victorian London, Britain has burned about 4.6 billion tonnes of coal for electricity and released about 10.4 billion tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere.
That’s more CO2 than most countries produced from all sources, not just coal-fired electricity, according to an analysis by Carbon Brief.
Moving forward with cleaner power
While the UK’s rapid adoption of coal has resulted in huge carbon emissions, the transition to clean power has been much faster.
“This will be the final chapter of an incredibly rapid transition in the country that launched the industrial revolution,” said Phil MacDonald, managing director of energy think tank Ember.
In 2012, coal still supplied about 40% of our electricity.
New policies and financial incentives for clean energy sources have accelerated the decline of coal. The share of power generation fell to 7% in 2017 and to about 2% after 2020.
Read more on Sky News.
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However, despite the urgent need to reduce CO2 emissions globally, global demand for coal is still growing, especially in Asia.
“It is not enough not to build new coal power plants,” said Fatih Birol, Director-General of the International Energy Agency (IEA). “We must find ways to close existing coal plants early.”
But a rapid transition away from fossil fuels doesn’t just mean moving away from coal. According to the IEA, coal still provides income for 50 million people worldwide.
This includes cheaper, safer alternatives and replacing coal’s role in heavy industry, which has now largely left the UK.
Other countries could take a lesson from Britain to end their love affair with coal. But plans to transition to zero-carbon electricity will be watched more closely.
