RenewableUK highlighted last week that Great Britain’s onshore and offshore wind farms generated more electricity than any other source of power last week.
35.6 percent of the country’s electricity was provided by wind, compared to 31.2 percent by gas, 21.3 percent by nuclear, 6.7 percent by biomass, 2.6 percent by coal, 1.8 percent by hydro and 0.8 percent from other sources, between Friday 8th and Thursday 14th March, according to data supplied by independent analysts Aurora Energy Research. Offshore wind alone generated 21.4 percent of electricity last week – more than nuclear.
The new generation figures come in the week following the agreement of an Offshore Wind Sector Deal between the Government and industry which will see the current 7,899 megawatts of offshore wind capacity in the UK grow to over 30,000MW by 2030.
RenewableUK’s Deputy Chief Executive Emma Pinchbeck said: “We’ve had a very blustery week, and that’s good news because wind has outstripped every other power source. It’s further proof that wind is playing a central role in keeping Britain powered up at a chilly time of the year.”
“It’s also interesting to see that offshore wind outperformed nuclear this week – showing the way our modern energy mix is changing, with low-cost wind energy becoming the backbone of our clean energy system,” she added.
As a result of the high levels of power generated by clean wind energy, Electric Insights, a website which provides live data and analysis on Britain’s electricity, noted that carbon emissions from the power sector over the last week were lower than usual for this time of year, at 157g CO2 per kilowatt hour.
