Britain’s electricity grid was the greenest it has ever been on Easter Monday, with almost 80% of the nation’s power coming from low-carbon energy sources.
According to the BBC, the sunny and windy weather, alongside lower-than-average demand for power, led to a surge in the production of renewables across the Bank Holiday weekend. In addition, there was no coal generation seen on the National Grid and only 10% of power came from gas plants.
The National Grid Electricity System Operator (ESO) also revealed that levels of carbon pollution for each unit of electricity consumed dropped to 39 grams of carbon dioxide at 1pm on Easter Monday. This low figure has now beaten the previous record of 46g that came on May 24th last year.
This new record is now something that can be added to Britain’s growing list of green accolades – sitting alongside the record run without coal in April last year and the highest ever levels of solar and wind energy generation in June 2020.
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An ‘astonishing’ green fuel mix
The ESO gave a breakdown of the fuel mix during the record-breaking event, claiming that wind power made up 39% of the energy mix, with solar at 21%, nuclear at 16% and the burning of biomass accounting for 4%.
Fintan Slye, director at National Grid ESO, offered his thoughts on the situation and championed the potential renewables have to offer:
“This latest record is another example of how the grid continues to transform at an astonishing rate as we move away from fossil fuel generation and harness the growth of renewable power sources.
“It’s an exciting time, and the progress we’re seeing with these records underlines the significant strides we’re taking towards our ambition of being able to operate the system carbon free by 2025.”
What this could mean for consumers
As Britain’s production of renewables grows it could in turn mean cheaper energy bills for consumers in the long run as the resource becomes more widely available. What’s more, the number of tariffs available will likely increase, giving us more choice and potentially better deals.
However, there are already a number of specialist green energy suppliers, including Bulb and Octopus, who have tariffs available with 100% renewable energy. Equally, these suppliers are now often regarded as some of the best energy suppliers and their green tariffs can be more affordable than those that use a standard fuel mix.
To find out for yourself if you’re looking to switch to a greener tariff, you should use an online energy comparison service. With this you can find out what options you have when it comes to green energy suppliers, what the best energy deals are right now and how much you can potentially save by switching.
