Clean Electricity From Wind Leaps In Energy Mix

Official Government statistics published today show the increasingly central role that wind is playing in the UK’s energy mix. The quarterly figures, released by the Department of Energy and Climate Change, show that in July to September, the amount of electricity generated by offshore wind increased by 52% compared to the same period in 2014, while onshore wind generation was up by 30%.

In the third quarter of 2015, wind generated 9.5% of the UK’s electricity (5% from onshore wind and 4.5% from offshore wind) due to higher wind speeds and increased capacity.

Overall, 23.5% of the UK’s electricity was generated by renewables in Q3 this year, up 6% on the same period last year. Wind remains Britain’s leading renewable technology, followed by bioenergy (9.1%), solar PV (3.5%) and hydro (1.4%).

Coal’s share of electricity generation decreased from 21% to 17% and gas generation also fell from 38% to 35% in Q3 2015 compared to the same period in 2014.

RenewableUK’s Deputy Chief Executive Maf Smith said: “Today’s figures show that the wind industry is continually upping its contribution of clean electricity to British homes, offices and factories. Wind energy is a success story which the 35,000 people who this work in this industry in the UK are proud to be a part of.

“Our main focus at the moment is driving down the cost of wind energy even further, to help consumers. The more we install, the cheaper the clean electricity we generate becomes. That’s why we’re keen to see onshore and offshore wind continuing to play a central role in our wide-ranging energy mix.

“The growth of wind energy in the UK is a cause for celebration. We’re keeping the lights on, keeping cost to the consumer down, and making sure we deliver on our climate change responsibilities.”