UK wind power hits a record high as it provides 70% of Britain's electricity, promising data reveals
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Tapping renewable energy sources like wind and solar will be key to limiting carbon emissions and avoiding a climate crisis. Now it seems Britain is well on its way to fully 'clean' energy, as it's now relying on wind power more than ever. Britain's wind turbines have set a new maximum wind record, reaching 22,243 megawatts for the first time on Sunday evening (December 15) – providing 54 per cent of the country's electricity supply.
![[NESO is constantly tracking the UK's energy mix. This graph shows the proportion of energy sources in the UK's mix for the past six days]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/17/10/93226201-14200757-NESO_is_constantly_tracking_the_UK_s_energy_mix_This_graph_shows-m-15_1734432568810.jpg){kind=tracking}
This beat the previous maximum wind record of 21,998MW set on January 10, 2023, reveals the National Energy System Operator (NESO). Meanwhile, at 4:30am on Monday morning, wind accounted for 70 per cent of the country's electricity supply – or 21,123MW.
![[The record was posted to X (Twitter) by the National Energy System Operator (NESO), which operates the UK's electricity system and for planning the gas system]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/17/10/93225695-14200757-image-a-11_1734429636218.jpg)
Wind power is an environmentally friendly, renewable energy source, contrasting with the likes of coal and gas (both fossil fuels). Dotted around the UK, wind turbines harness energy from the wind using mechanical power to spin a generator and create electricity.
![[Eastern Green Link 2 will move clean energy from Peterhead in Aberdeenshire to Drax in North Yorkshire, while a shorter line called Eastern Green Link 1 will run from Torness near Edinburgh to Hawthorn Pit in County Durham. A similar line down the west coast, known as Western Link already transports energy between Hunterston in Scotland and Flintshire Bridge in Wales]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/17/11/88517935-14200757-Eastern_Green_Link_2_will_move_clean_energy_from_Peterhead_in_Ab-a-20_1734433643896.jpg)
The new record comes as the government plans to make Britain's energy system 'clean' by decarbonising the electricity grid by 2030. Wind turbines can be found both off-shore and on land. Wind turns the propeller-like blades of a turbine around a rotor, which spins a generator, which creates electricity. The new record comes after the Government announced plans to decarbonise the electricity grid by 2030.
![[In Britain, the last remaining coal-fired power station, at Ratcliffe-on-Soar near Nottingham , switched off its generators for the last time on September 30]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/17/10/90292859-14200757-In_Britain_the_last_remaining_coal_fired_power_station_at_Ratcli-a-12_1734429866335.jpg)
The new wind record was posted to X (Twitter) by NESO, which operates the UK's electricity system and for planning the gas system. It was set because Britain experienced above-average winds on Sunday night, including in Scotland, which is heavily-populated with wind turbines.
