The last time Britain went a week without coal was in 1882 when the first coal-fired plant opened in London. Since then, coal has been burned nearly every day to produce electricity for the country, serving as the nation’s main source of energy for a long, long time.
But on May 1, nearly 150 years later, every coal-fired generator was shut down—and none of them were restarted until this past Wednesday, marking an entire week without coal. Instead of coal, the nation relied primarily on renewable energy along with standbys such as oil, natural gas, and nuclear. Britain has pledged to reach zero coal production by 2025, with a completely carbon-free power grid by 2050. It’s an ambitious goal, but judging by last week’s results, it appears to be well on its way to succeeding.
