UK Energy Suppliers Recently Went On Their Longest Coal-Free Run For 137 Years

The UK recently went more than 18 days without using coal, the longest coal-free run the country has gone on since 1882.

There are a number of reasons why one of the world’s top priorities right now is finding viable ways in which we can create power. Reason number one is the damage our incessant use of fossil fuels has done to the planet, some of it irreparable. The other big reason is those aforementioned fossil fuels are quickly running out.

There are a number of ways humankind has discovered to create energy that are in the process of replacing fossil fuels. Solar, wind, nuclear, hydro. It’s also no secret that some parts of the world are trying harder to instigate these changes than others. The UK provided some concrete evidence that they truly are doing their utmost to run the country on nothing but renewable energy.

They did so by going 18 days, six hours, and ten minutes without using any coal to create energy whatsoever. As reported by UK Coal on Twitter, that’s the longest the country has gone without using coal since 1882, so pretty incredible. While coal was taking a break, gas picked up the slack with a 40% contribution to power. Not the best alternative, but wind and solar power making up for a combined 20% of the nation’s power is definitely promising.

The UK’s goal is for the country to run entirely on renewable energy by 2025, reports Business Green. That might seem like a lofty goal to some, but this recent record is actually a sign that the country might well be ahead of schedule in that regard. The next step is to go months without using coal, perhaps as soon as this summer when the demand for power is much lower than during colder times of year.

Although the UK still uses a lot of gas, it uses very little coal even outside of the boundaries of its new record. After the two and a half week record came to an end, coal only attributed to 1.06% of power in the UK. The following morning, it was back down to just 0.11%. Negligible really, and perhaps other more power hungry countries should be taking note.

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