Great Britain set a new wind power generation record on 11 November with turbines producing 22,711MW at 7:30pm, according to the National Energy System Operator.
The figure surpassed the previous 22,523MW record set on 18 December 2024.
At the time of the new peak, wind supplied 43.6% of electricity demand, delivering enough power to meet the needs of more than 22 million homes.
NESO said the milestone showed the grid can run securely with high levels of domestic renewable generation.
“This is a world-beating record, showing that our national grid can run safely and securely on large quantities of renewables generated right here in Britain,” said Kayte O’Neill, chief operating officer at the National Energy System Operator.
“We’ve come on leaps and bounds in wind generation in recent years. It really shows what is possible, and I look forward to seeing if we can hit another clean energy milestone in the months ahead: running Britain’s electricity grid entirely zero carbon,” she added.
At the time of the record, gas accounted for 12.5% of generation, with 12.1% from embedded wind, 11.3% from interconnector flows, 8% from nuclear, 8% from biomass, 1.4% from hydro and 1.1% from storage.
Government figures show clean energy technologies now provide around 60% of the country’s electricity mix, compared to 3% in 2000.
Britain hosts five of the world’s largest offshore wind farms and set a solar generation record of 14GW in June.
Wind power produced almost 83TWh in 2024, overtaking other sources and reinforcing its role as the UK’s largest generator of electricity.
Ministers aim to double onshore wind and quadruple offshore wind capacity by 2030, alongside plans to expand solar generation by 150%.
RenewableUK’s Deputy Chief Executive Jane Cooper said: “On a cold, dark November evening, wind was generating enough electricity to power 80% of British homes when we needed it most. This new record high period is another tangible example of wind taking its place at the heart of our clean energy system, as we transition away from the volatile prices of fossil fuels which caused the energy crisis.
“The Government has a great opportunity to strengthen the UK’s homegrown energy security further, and for our industry to provide even more clean power, by being more ambitious on the amount of new clean power capacity we can secure in the upcoming auction for new projects to go ahead.
“A record amount of offshore wind capacity is eligible to compete for contracts in this auction, so we’re urging Ministers to pull out all the stops to enable this vital capacity to be built as soon as possible. This will enable us to create tens of thousands of new jobs, support the growth of supply chain companies and attract billions in private investment to the UK, as well as maintaining our place as a global leader in offshore wind”.
Source: reNews
