The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has released its Energy Trends report for the third quarter, showing that renewables again rose, this time overtaking gas.

Total energy production was 1.8 per cent lower than in the third quarter of 2018, with increases in oil and renewables output offset by falls from coal, gas, biomass and nuclear output.

Low carbon electricity’s share of generation increased from 55.9 per cent in the third quarter of 2018 to a record high of 57.3 per cent in the third quarter of 2019, due to increased renewables generation. Conversely, the share of generation from fossil fuels decreased to a record low of 40.1 per cent in the third quarter of 2019. Renewables’ share of electricity generation increased to a record 38.9 per cent, up from the 32.9 per cent share in the third quarter of 2018, and marginally exceeded the share of gas for the first time ever.

Coal use saw a massive decline, with generators’ demand for coal falling by 58 per cent, from 2.5 per cent to 1 per cent of mix, and gas 1.5 per cent lower, however the actual demand was lower, so that gas actually accounted for a fraction more (0.1 per cent) of the mix in the third quarter.

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