United Kingdom energy mix & electricity
Electricity generation in the United Kingdom reached 292 TWh in 2025. The biggest single contributor is natural gas with 31.1%; wind power adds 29.4% and bioenergy 14.1%.
Electricity generation by source in 2025
Share of electricity generation by source, with the change in percentage points over the last ten years.
| Source | TWh | Share | 10-yr Δ pp |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gas | 90.91 | 31.1% | +1.6 |
| Wind | 85.84 | 29.4% | +17.5 |
| Bioenergy | 41.21 | 14.1% | +5.5 |
| Nuclear | 36.38 | 12.4% | −8.3 |
| Solar | 19.32 | 6.6% | +4.4 |
| Oil | 12.77 | 4.4% | +1.6 |
| Hydro | 5.55 | 1.9% | 0 |
| Coal | 0.33 | 0.1% | −22.3 |
| Other renewables | 0.01 | 0% | — |
| Total | 292 | 100% |
United Kingdom: electricity in context
Electricity generation in the United Kingdom reached 292 TWh in 2025. That is about 0.9% of the world total, in the same league as Taiwan. The biggest single contributor is natural gas with 31.1%; wind power adds 29.4% and bioenergy 14.1%.
The renewable share stood at 52%, placing the United Kingdom 58th of 158 ranked countries. That is 18 points above the world average of 33.8%. It is also above the average for Europe (41.6%). Add nuclear power (12.4%) and low-carbon sources reach 64.4% of generation. Each kilowatt-hour emitted on average 217 g CO₂e, against a world average of 458 g. That makes the grid comfortably cleaner than the global average. In the cleanest-grid ranking, the United Kingdom is 47th of 158.
The decade’s big winner is wind power, up 45.6 TWh between 2015 and 2025 (plus 17.5 percentage points of the mix). Coal moved the other way, falling by 75.6 TWh. The net effect: renewables gained 27.4 percentage points of share since 2015. Total generation shrank by 46.6 TWh over the same period. Carbon intensity dropped from 398 to 217 g/kWh, a 45% cut.
Coal is effectively gone from the grid, down from a peak of 69.5% in 1987.
Solar (6.6%) and wind (29.4%) now add up to 36% of generation; the global figure is 17.3%. Per person, that is 278 kWh of solar electricity a year, versus a global average of 338 kWh. Wind adds 1,234 kWh per person, the 15th-highest figure of 156 countries. Solar first passed 1% of the mix in 2014.
Generation per person is 4,203 kWh a year, close to the world average of 3,860 kWh. The United Kingdom is a net importer of electricity, buying 29.1 TWh more than it sells, about 9% of its demand.
How the power mix has changed
Electricity generation by source since 1985. Switch to shares to see the structural shift independent of demand growth.
Renewables and carbon intensity
United Kingdom against the world and Europe averages.
Total energy: beyond electricity
Primary energy covers transport, heating and industry too. Renewables supply 21.3% of primary energy and fossil fuels 73.5% (2024). Per person, that is 28,016 kWh a year (world: 21,654).
Substitution method: non-fossil electricity is converted to the primary energy a fossil plant would have needed.
Domestic extraction of coal, gas and oil, in energy terms.
Power plants in United Kingdom
The 2,751 power plants recorded in the United Kingdom add up to 97.2 GW of capacity, 31% of it Gas. The largest is Pembroke at 2,180 MW. The database was last updated in 2021, so newer wind and solar farms and rooftop PV are under-represented.
Largest power plants
| # | Plant | Fuel | Capacity MW | Commissioned | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pembroke | Gas | 2,180 | — | RWE Npower Plc |
| 2 | West Burton | Coal | 2,012 | — | EDF Energy |
| 3 | Cottam | Coal | 2,008 | — | EDF Energy |
| 4 | Ratcliffe | Coal | 2,000 | — | Uniper UK Limited |
| 5 | Drax | Coal | 1,980 | — | Drax Power |
| 6 | Eggborough | Coal | 1,960 | — | Eggborough Power Ltd |
| 7 | Dinorwig | Hydro | 1,800 | — | ENGIE |
| 8 | Staythorpe C | Gas | 1,772 | — | RWE Npower Plc |
| 9 | Dinorwig | Hydro | 1,728 | — | First Hydro Company |
| 10 | Aberthaw B | Coal | 1,586 | — | RWE Npower Plc |
| 11 | Didcot B | Gas | 1,470 | — | RWE Npower Plc |
| 12 | Grain CHP | Cogeneration | 1,404 | — | Uniper UK Limited |
| 13 | Connahs Quay | Gas | 1,380 | — | Uniper UK Limited |
| 14 | West Burton CCGT | Gas | 1,332 | — | EDF Energy |
| 15 | South Humber Bank | Gas | 1,310 | — | Centrica |
Source: WRI Global Power Plant Database v1.3 (CC BY 4.0). Explore all 2,751 plants on the interactive power plant map.
Solar & wind farms: United Kingdom
4,768 utility-scale facilities tracked by Global Energy Monitor (2026): 10.9 GW of solar and 24.8 GW of wind operating, plus 127 GW under construction or planned.
See them on the mapLargest solar & wind farms: United Kingdom →
How does United Kingdom compare?
United Kingdom next to 6 neighbouring countries, plus regional and world averages. Click a column to sort; use “Compare” for full side-by-side charts.
| Country | Renewable % | Low-carbon % | Fossil % | gCO₂/kWh | kWh / person | Generation TWh | Mix | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 52% | 64.4% | 35.6% | 217 | 4,203 | 292 | — | |
| Ireland | 48.1% | 48.1% | 51.9% | 257 | 5,831 | 31 | Compare | |
| Belgium | 38.9% | 72% | 28% | 150 | 6,199 | 72.9 | Compare | |
| Netherlands | 51.2% | 54.2% | 45.8% | 254 | 7,356 | 135 | Compare | |
| Luxembourg | 91.6% | 91.6% | 8.4% | 123 | 2,263 | 1.5 | Compare | |
| Denmark | 91.2% | 91.2% | 8.8% | 114 | 5,548 | 33.3 | Compare | |
| Germany | 59.1% | 59.1% | 40.9% | 330 | 5,953 | 500 | Compare | |
| Europe average | 41.6% | 62% | 38% | 271 | 6,203 | 4,626 | Compare | |
| World average | 33.8% | 42.6% | 57.4% | 458 | 3,860 | 31,772 | Compare |
Calculators for United Kingdom
United Kingdom energy: frequently asked questions
What percentage of electricity in the United Kingdom is renewable?
What is the main source of electricity in the United Kingdom?
How clean is the electricity in the United Kingdom?
Does the United Kingdom use nuclear power?
How much electricity does the United Kingdom use per person?
How much solar power does the United Kingdom produce?
Does the United Kingdom import electricity?
More countries in Europe
Sources & references
- Our World in Data: Energy dataset (CC BY 4.0) — compiled from the sources below
- Ember: Yearly Electricity Data — generation, shares, carbon intensity
- Energy Institute: Statistical Review of World Energy — primary energy, fossil production
- U.S. Energy Information Administration: International Energy Data — gap-filling for smaller countries
- World Resources Institute: Global Power Plant Database v1.3 (CC BY 4.0) — power plant locations and capacity
Electricity data: Ember and Energy Institute Statistical Review via Our World in Data (CC BY 4.0); latest year 2025. Power plants: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). Rankings exclude systems under 1 TWh and values older than 2020. Figures may be revised by the original publishers.