Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station shut off for the final time on 30 September 2024, ending coal-fired electricity generation in the UK after 142 years1. The Climate Change Committee, in its 2025 progress report to Parliament, records "the UK's last coal-fired electricity power station, Ratcliffe-on-Soar, closing in October 2024"2. The station's final day was marked by the solar installer Spirit Energy as "the last day that coal will be in the UK's energy mix since the first plant was commissioned in 1882"3.
Coal's share of generation had already fallen close to zero before the closure. Coal accounted for just 0.6% of UK electricity generation in 20241. Spirit Energy states that coal made up 80% of the UK's energy mix in the early 1980s, then dropped significantly to just 40% in 20123. The Climate Change Committee attributes the 2024 fall in UK emissions, which were 2.5% lower than 2023 and 50.4% below 1990 levels, partly to the closure, with the reduction "driven by the electricity supply and industry sectors"2.
What replaced coal is now dominated by wind. Wind contributed 30% of the UK's total electricity generation in 2024, making it the country's largest single source of power and surpassing gas, which accounted for 26.3%1. Renewables accounted for 51% of UK electricity generation on average across 2024, the first time they consistently provided more than half of the country's electricity over four consecutive quarters, from Q4 2023 to Q3 20241. About 14% of UK electricity comes from European countries including France, Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway1. The carbon intensity of UK electricity fell from 419gCO2 per kilowatt hour in 2014 to 124gCO2 per kWh in 20241.
The Climate Change Committee's report, laid before Parliament on 25 June 2025, sets out the wider picture. UK territorial emissions, including international aviation and shipping, were 413.7 MtCO2e in 2024, a 2.5% reduction from 2023 and the tenth consecutive year of sustained reduction excluding the pandemic years 2020 and 20212. Emissions from the residential buildings sector increased by 1.5 MtCO2e in 2024, likely due to an increase in heating demand following reductions in gas prices2. Heat pump installations rose 56% in 2024, driven by increased support from government schemes, though only around 1% of UK homes are heated with a heat pump2.
"Today marks the last day that coal will be in the UK's energy mix since the first plant was commissioned in 1882."
Why it matters for households
Coal's exit changes what sits behind the socket, not the price on the bill. The Climate Change Committee states that it is the price of gas that has driven up both gas and electricity bills, and that with North Sea resources largely used up, a fossil-fuelled future would leave the UK increasingly dependent on imports, with bills subject to volatile fossil fuel prices2. Gas still supplied 26.3% of electricity in 20241, so household electricity costs remain tied to gas prices even with coal gone. The committee also notes that the ratio of electricity to gas prices remains significantly off track, which it calls crucial for heat and cross-economy electrification, and that removing policy costs from electricity remains its first recommendation, with no clear progress made since the election2. For a home weighing electrification, that ratio is the number that decides whether running costs fall.
What happens next
The government's stated Clean Power target is for at least 95% of electricity to come from low-carbon sources by 2030, with a maximum limit of 5% for unabated gas1. The Climate Change Committee assesses that 61% of the required emissions reduction to hit the 2030 target is covered by credible plans or carries some associated risks, mostly in electricity supply and surface transport, while for the remaining 39% there are significant risks or insufficient plans, with the biggest risks around heat pump roll-out and industrial electrification2. It says these need to be addressed in the forthcoming Warm Homes Plan and Industrial Strategy, both due this year2. Wind capacity additions fell from 3.5GW in 2022 to 1.6GW in 2023 and 0.7GW in 2024, and no new offshore wind farms came online in 20241.
Sources3 cited
- How much of the UK’s energy is renewable? 2025 analysis, sunsave.energy
- Progress in reducing emissions - 2025 report to Parliament - Climate Change Committee, theccc.org.uk
- No More Coal - What is the Future of the UK's Energy Mix?, blog.spiritenergy.co.uk