UK’s last coal-fired electricity plant is closing, ending 142 years of coal power
Britain is the first G7 nation to phase out the fossil fuel, part of efforts to generate all energy from renewable sources by 2030
Britain’s last coal-fired power plant will close on Monday, ending 142 years of coal-generated electricity in the nation that sparked the Industrial Revolution.
The Ratcliffe-on-Soar station in central England is to finish its final shift at midnight, after more than half a century of turning coal into power. Owner Uniper says many of the 170 remaining employees will stay on during a two-year decommissioning process.
The UK government hailed the closure as a milestone in efforts to generate all of Britain’s energy from renewable sources by 2030.
The shutdown makes Britain the first country from the Group of Seven major economies to phase out coal, although some other European nations, including Sweden and Belgium, got there sooner.
Energy Minister Michael Shanks said the plant’s closure “marks the end of an era and coal workers can be rightly proud of their work powering our country for over 140 years. We owe generations a debt of gratitude as a country”.
“The era of coal might be ending, but a new age of good energy jobs for our country is just beginning,” he said.
