The closure of the Ratcliffe-on-Soar plant marks the end of coal in UK electricity generation, boosting the transition to renewable energy and significantly reducing emissions

London, Sep 30 (EFE).- The United Kingdom will eliminate coal from its electricity production this Monday by closing, at the end of the day, its last plant powered by that mineral, which represents a milestone in the country that introduced the use of that fuel at the end of the 19th century.

The closure of the Ratcliffe-on-Soar plant (central England), which began operating in 1968 with four heaters and a 199-meter chimney, represents a turning point in the trajectory of a country that since 1882 was a symbol of the energy obtained from coal.

The United Kingdom thus becomes the first of the G7 economies to completely eliminate coal from its electricity generation.

Many of the 170 employees will remain hired to carry out the process of dismantling the infrastructure over the next two years, according to authorities.

According to a survey carried out by Climate Outreach and More in Common released today, two thirds of Britons (65%) support the switch from fossil fuels to renewables, while only 8% oppose it.

Greenpeace UK policy director Doug Parr said Monday that the elimination of coal has been made possible “thanks to the rapid advance of renewable energy.”

“The UK sets an example that the rest of the world must follow if we are to stop the devastation caused by the climate crisis and air pollution,” he said.

Parr stressed that the transition must be done in conjunction with the unions to ensure other opportunities for workers.

Eight enormous cooling towers (each measuring 114 meters and walls measuring 18 centimeters) were erected on the Ratcliffe-on-Soar plant, with a generating capacity of two gigawatts, enough to supply electricity to two million homes.

The last delivery of coal arrived last June by train, which normally carried up to 15,000 tons of fuel.

The Ember think tank, which aims to accelerate the transition to clean sources, published an analysis indicating that the United Kingdom experienced a rapid displacement from coal, going from 39% of its electricity generation in 2012 to 0% in starting in October.

The organization noted that since 2012, the shares of wind and solar in electricity generation “rose from 6 to 34 percent, while gas only increased slightly, from 28 to 34 percent.”

According to Ember, wind and solar together displaced 28 million tonnes of coal and avoided £2.9 billion (€3.44 billion) in fuel costs (in 2023 prices).

Since 2012, emissions from the electricity sector have been reduced by 74%, from 160 MtCO2e to 41 MtCO2e, as the Government, which aspires to carbon neutrality by 2030, closed or reused 15 coal power plants with other fuels, until the closure of the last this month.