The Impact of COVID-19 on Great Britain’s Electricity System 

The impact of COVID-19 on Great Britain’s electricity system is a topic that has been widely discussed in recent months. The virus has disrupted the lives of many people across the globe, including those in Great Britain. In addition to the human toll, there have been major economic impacts as well.  

But what was the impact of COVID-19 on Great Britain’s electricity? Did the nationwide lockdown affect electricity in the UK? What happened to Britain’s electricity supply mix? This article will discuss some of these impacts in detail. Let’s take a look. 

What were the Covid impacts on the electricity system? 

COVID-19 has had a significant impact on Great Britain’s electricity system. The virus has caused a decline in energy generation, leading to a need for increased imports. It has also caused an increase in demand for electricity, driven by the use of air conditioners and other cooling devices. 

the impact of COVID-19 has been felt in Great Britain’s electricity system. The UK has been forced to import more power from France, Belgium and the Netherlands. 

The reason for this is that a high percentage of the country’s energy comes from nuclear power plants (i.e., approximately 35%), which are being closed down because they are no longer safe due to COVID-19-related issues. It has also been suggested that fuel should be imported from abroad instead of being produced domestically if necessary. 

The closure of these plants means that there will be an increase in demand for electricity as well as an increase in prices for consumers as a result of these changes; prices are expected to rise by around 3%. 

Solar domination 

There was record-breaking news in 2020 as Britain’s solar panels produced more power than ever, producing more power than coal. In May 2020, over 10% of the month’s electricity demand was provided by solar. 

This rise in solar production was down to two reasons. Firstly, as the nation was still in lockdown, there were huge reductions in road and air traffic, leading to reduced air pollution and contrails in the sky. These two factors would often absorb some of the incoming sunlight. 

Secondly, unusually good weather during the spring meant that the UK had favourable conditions for better solar production.  

Meanwhile, during the same time, every coal power station in the UK was spent idle. This meant that May 2020 was the UK’s first ever full month where zero electricity was generated from coal. 

In addition to this record feat, by the start of July due to the reduction in coal, the UK had spent 8,760 hours without coal and this was the equivalent of a full year. To make a comparison to this number, in May 2016 the UK had its first zero-coal hour. 

Reduction in carbon emissions 

With zero coal used for energy, further boosts to renewable energy and reductions to demands, carbon emissions were down throughout April-June. Furthermore, there were more modern-day records as carbon emissions from electricity generation fell below 10 million tonnes. 

Let’s take a look at carbon intensity. This is the number of grams of carbon dioxide that it takes to make one unit of electricity at a kilowatt per hour (kWh). 

In the middle of the Spring Bank Holiday, this figure lowered to record lows of 18 g/kWh. Favourable conditions for wind and solar generation led to these numbers. 

Combined, 90% of Britain’s electricity came from nuclear and renewables with a mere 2.8GW coming from fossil fuels. 

The UK electricity supply mix 

During this time, 40% of Britain’s electricity came from renewables, with only 1/500th coming from coal. Looking forwards, a zero coal future may seem reachable. In contrast, only 5 years ago, 20% of the supply mix was from coal. 

UK supply mix for the second quarter of 2020.