UK Electricity Grid Report 2024
In 2024, Great Britain generated 281 TWh of electricity. Gas was the biggest single source at 25.8%. Renewables (wind, solar and hydro) supplied 36.4%, or 43.1% counting biomass, and each unit generated averaged 124gCO₂ per kWh. That made 2024 cleaner than 2023: carbon intensity fell 25 g on the year.
Automated summaryIn 2024, Great Britain's electricity grid generated 280.94 TWh, with gas remaining the single largest source at 25.8%, closely followed by wind at 23.4% and nuclear at 13.7%. Renewables accounted for 36.4% of generation, rising to 43.1% including biomass, while low carbon sources reached 56.7%, and coal fell to just 0.6% alongside 5,472 coal-free hours. These shifts helped bring the average carbon intensity down to 124 gCO2/kWh, with 247.5 hours of negative wholesale prices recorded against an average market index of £73.55/MWh. National demand totalled 230.6 TWh, peaking at 45.1 GW in a single half hour.
Renewables share
36.4%
43.1% incl. biomass
Low carbon share
56.7%
renewables + nuclear
Carbon intensity
124 g
per kWh · low 19 g, high 304 g
Generation
281 TWh
incl. estimated embedded wind and solar
Coal share
0.6%
5,472 coal-free hours
Peak wind output
17.3 GW
highest half-hour average
The 2024 generation mix, fuel by fuel
share of GB generation- Gas25.8% · 72.62 TWh
- Wind23.4% · 65.71 TWh
- Imports15.7% · 44.04 TWh
- Nuclear13.7% · 38.37 TWh
- Biomass6.7% · 18.82 TWh
- Solar5% · 14.06 TWh
- Hydro1.3% · 3.58 TWh
- Other1.2% · 3.34 TWh
- Storage0.7% · 1.88 TWh
- Coal0.6% · 1.57 TWh
Wholesale prices in 2024
market index (MID), volume-weighted across APX and N2EXThe average UK wholesale electricity price in 2024 was £73.55 per MWh on the market index (MID) basis. Prices were negative for 247.5 hours across the year. The most expensive half hour came on 14 October 2024 (settlement period 38) at £605.17 per MWh; the cheapest, £-61.09, came on 7 April 2024.
Average price
£73.55
per MWh, volume-weighted
Highest half hour
£605
14 October 2024, period 38
Lowest half hour
£-61.09
7 April 2024
Negative price hours
247.5
price below £0/MWh
Electricity demand in 2024
GB initial national demand outturn (INDO/INDOD), ElexonGreat Britain used 230.6 TWh of electricity in 2024. The hungriest day was 17 January 2024 (886 GWh); the quietest, 25 August 2024 (434.8 GWh). Demand peaked at 45.1 GW on 15 January 2024 (settlement period 36).
Total demand
230.6 TWh
national demand outturn
Peak half hour
45.1 GW
15 January 2024
Highest day
886 GWh
17 January 2024
Quietest day
434.8 GWh
25 August 2024
Electricity supplied, 2009 to 2026
TWh per year, generation basis incl. estimated embedded wind and solar- 2009329 TWh
- 2010335 TWh
- 2011322 TWh
- 2012324 TWh
- 2013322 TWh
- 2014310 TWh
- 2015305 TWh
- 2016303 TWh
- 2017301 TWh
- 2018298 TWh
- 2019292 TWh
- 2020276 TWh
- 2021285 TWh
- 2022290 TWh
- 2023275 TWh
- 2024281 TWh
- 2025289 TWh
- 2026151 TWh
Britain supplies markedly less electricity than it did in 2009, even as the economy has grown: efficiency, LED lighting and offshored industry all pushed demand down while the mix decarbonised.
How 2024 compares
- Versus 2023: renewables +0.9 points, carbon intensity -25 g.
- Versus 2009, the first year on record: renewables up 33 points (from 3.4%), and each unit of electricity 72.1% cleaner (445 g to 124 g).
- Explore the neighbouring years: 2023 · 2025 or the full year-by-year table.
Cite this report
You are welcome to reuse the figures on this page with a link back. Suggested citation:
Purely Energy, "UK Electricity Grid Report 2024", purelyenergy.co.uk/grid-report/2024. Derived from NESO historic generation mix data.
2024 grid questions, answered
How green was UK electricity in 2024?
In 2024, wind, solar and hydro supplied 36.4% of GB generation (43.1% including biomass), low-carbon sources supplied 56.7%, and the average carbon intensity was 124 gCO2 per kWh.
What was the biggest source of UK electricity in 2024?
Gas was the largest single source in 2024, supplying 25.8% of GB generation. The full fuel-by-fuel breakdown is on this page.
How much coal did the UK burn for electricity in 2024?
Coal supplied 0.6% of GB generation in 2024 (1.57 TWh), and the grid ran coal-free for 5,472 hours.
What was the average UK wholesale electricity price in 2024?
The average UK wholesale electricity price in 2024 was £73.55 per MWh on the market index (MID) basis, volume-weighted across the year's half-hourly trading.
How many hours were UK power prices negative in 2024?
UK wholesale power prices (market index basis) were negative for 247.5 hours in 2024.
How much electricity did Great Britain use in 2024?
Great Britain used 230.6 TWh of electricity in 2024, on the national demand outturn basis (Elexon INDOD).
What was GB peak electricity demand in 2024?
GB electricity demand peaked at 45.1 GW in 2024, on 15 January 2024 (settlement period 36), on the national demand outturn basis.
Use the data
Every figure on this page, as a CSV you can drop into a spreadsheet.
Basis: NESO historic generation mix (GB transmission generation plus estimated embedded wind and solar), aggregated by calendar year, energy-weighted. Renewables is NESO's wind + solar + hydro measure; the biomass-inclusive share is shown alongside. See the live version of this data on our real-time grid map and today's prices on wholesale market data.
Data comes from the Elexon Insights Solution (BMRS), the NESO Data Portal and the Carbon Intensity API, a project by the National Energy System Operator and the University of Oxford Department of Computer Science. Contains BMRS data © Elexon Limited copyright and database right 2026.
Energy decisions for the grid of 2026
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