Grid

Records

Great Britain

GB electricity records

Highest and lowest half-hours since Grid's records began (NESO historic data from 2009), shown next to NESO's official records.

Highest wind since Grid's records began

23.9 GW

Wed 25 Mar 2026, 13:30 GMT

NESO historic generation mix. From 1 Jan 2009. Half-hour. Transmission-connected wind plus embedded wind, from NESO historic generation mix.

NESO official record: 23,880 MW, 25 Mar 2026, 13:30 (source: NESO)

Lowest carbon since Grid's records began

19 gCO₂/kWh

Mon 15 Apr 2024, 14:30 BST

NESO historic generation mix. From 1 Jan 2009. Half-hour. Half-hour carbon intensity from NESO historic generation mix.

NESO historic mix: 19 gCO₂/kWh, Mon 15 Apr 2024, 14:30 BST (source: NESO)

Highest renewable share since Grid's records began

80.8%

Sun 20 Sep 2026, 12:00 BST

NESO historic generation mix. From 1 Jan 2009. Half-hour. Renewable share of NESO historic generation (wind, solar and hydro).

NESO historic mix: 80.8%, Sun 20 Sep 2026, 12:00 BST (source: NESO)

Days since coal power ended

753 days

30 Sep 2024

Uniper, Ratcliffe-on-Soar. From 30 Sep 2024. Day. GB's last coal power station, Ratcliffe-on-Soar, closed on 30 Sep 2024. NESO historic mix still shows residual coal after that date; this record does not follow those readings.

NESO: GB stopped using coal for electricity in 2024.

First half-hour with wind above each gigawatt

Transmission-connected wind plus embedded wind. The first half-hour that series reached each whole gigawatt from 10 GW up, since Grid's records began.

Wind milestones since Grid's records began
MilestoneFirst half-hour (London)
10 GWFri 23 Dec 2016, 16:00 GMT
11 GWSun 1 Oct 2017, 17:00 BST
12 GWWed 6 Dec 2017, 17:30 GMT
13 GWWed 17 Jan 2018, 06:00 GMT
14 GWSat 17 Mar 2018, 11:30 GMT
15 GWTue 18 Dec 2018, 11:30 GMT
16 GWSun 8 Dec 2019, 17:00 GMT
17 GWFri 18 Dec 2020, 12:30 GMT
18 GWSun 28 Mar 2021, 17:30 BST
19 GWSat 29 Jan 2022, 05:00 GMT
20 GWWed 2 Nov 2022, 11:30 GMT
21 GWTue 10 Jan 2023, 15:30 GMT
22 GWSun 15 Dec 2024, 18:00 GMT
23 GWFri 5 Dec 2025, 16:30 GMT

Coal gives way to wind

Yearly averages computed from the same NESO historic series. The sentences use those averages; they are not hard-coded.

  • Coal, share of generation
  • Wind, share of generation

In 2009, coal supplied 28% of the mix and carbon intensity averaged 444 gCO₂/kWh.

By 2026, coal’s share is 0% and carbon intensity has fallen to 142 g.

Wind has moved from 1% to 31% of generation over the same years.

Supported by National Energy SO Open Data.

Questions

What is the wind record based on?
Transmission-connected wind plus embedded wind from NESO historic generation mix, since Grid's records began. The current Grid record is 23.9 GW at Wed 25 Mar 2026, 13:30 GMT. NESO official record: 23,880 MW, 25 Mar 2026, 13:30 (source: NESO).
Why is there no solar record?
Grid's solar peak currently disagrees with NESO's official record of 15.4 GW between 12:30 and 13:00 on 23 Apr 2026. The solar card is hidden until those figures match within 2%.
Why is there no zero-carbon record?
NESO published 98.8% on 22 Apr 2026. Grid's share is wind, solar, hydro and nuclear over the historic generation total. Those are not the same definition, so the card is hidden rather than shown as one record.
What was the lowest carbon half-hour since Grid's records began?
19 gCO₂/kWh at Mon 15 Apr 2024, 14:30 BST. Rows with impossible shares, such as zero-carbon above 100%, are dropped before the minimum is taken.
When did GB stop burning coal for electricity?
GB's last coal power station, Ratcliffe-on-Soar, closed on 30 Sep 2024. That is 753 days ago. NESO historic mix still shows residual coal after closure; this record stays on the documented end date.