By this time next week, the UK will be turning off the last coal-fired power plant. For the government to succeed with its climate plans, stations burning natural gas may be next.
Britain’s shift from being a fossil-fuel pioneer to phasing out coal 10 years ahead of the Group of Seven’s deadline may guide other nations trying to purge energy sources that cause climate change.
The world’s first coal-fired power station was built in London in 1882, yet the decision to move away from the dirtiest fuel was a relatively easy one. With the help of carbon prices that added costs for every metric ton of CO2 released into the atmosphere, gas-fired power plants gradually took over.
Falling fuel prices in the US have seen a similar shift take place on the American grid, though coal is still an important energy source.
New UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer plans to have a “zero-carbon electricity system” by decade’s end. That’s a tight timeline for nearly eliminating gas, which provided about a third of the power last year.