UK Government Plans To Close Coal Power Stations By 2025 to Focus on Gas

The British Government announced on Wednesday its plans to close all coal-fired power stations by 2025 and restrict their use by 2023.

“We are tackling a legacy of underinvestment and ageing power stations which we need to replace with alternatives that are reliable, good value for money, and help to reduce our emissions,” Energy and Climate Change Secretary Amber Rudd said.

Coal currently provides almost 30% of the UK’s electricity. 

“It cannot be satisfactory for an advanced economy like the UK to be relying on polluting, carbon intensive 50-year-old coal-fired power stations,” the Energy Secretary added.

According to British newspapers, Rudd is expected to announce that gas will become “central” to the country’s energy security in a speech later on Wednesday.

Commentators wrote that Rudd’s statement is a strong signal ahead of the UN Climate Summit in Paris.