LONDON, SEPT 30 – The last coal-fired power station in the United Kingdom (UK) will officially close today, making Britain the first G7 country to end its reliance on fossil fuels to generate electricity.
The closure of Ratcliffe-on-Soar, a power plant that has dominated the landscape of central England for nearly 60 years, marks a symbolic step in the UK’s ambition to decarbonise electricity by 2030, and be carbon-free by 2050.
“The era of coal may be over, but a new era of good energy jobs for our country is just beginning,” UK Energy Minister Michael Shanks said in a statement.
The owner of the Ratcliffe-on-Soar plant, Uniper, said the site would be put into a two-year decommissioning period from October.
“Instead is a new development which is a carbon-free technology and energy hub,” said the company.
A total of 350 Uniper employees and contractors working at the site will either be reassigned to other parts of the company or leave their jobs in the three seasons before the end of 2026, Uniper told AFP.
It marks the end of Britain’s 140-year dependence on coal as it becomes the first of the G7 rich nations to completely phase out coal-fired electricity.
Italy plans to do so next year, France in 2027, Canada in 2030 and Germany in 2038. However, Japan and the United States have no set dates. – AFP
