The UK's Energy Mix
Geography: AQA GCSE, topic 6.1.8
The UK's Energy Mix
The UK's industrial revolution was driven by coal. The development of natural gas fields in the North Sea close to Scotland in the 1970s and 1980s shifted the balance towards gas.
Coal as an energy source in the UK
- The UK's industrial revolution was driven by coal.
- There were enormous coal mines in the north of England.
- In 1913, the UK mined 290 million tonnes of coal. In 1960, this had fallen to 200 million tonnes. Today it is 3 million tonnes.
- In 2017, coal was used to generate 5% of the UK's energy.
North Sea oil & gas
- Oil and gas were first discovered in the North Sea in the 1960s.
- In the 1980s, it really began to impact the UK's energy mix.
- In 1980, coal produced 36% of the UK's energy, oil produced 37% and natural gas produced 22%.
- In 2017, natural gas produced 39% of the UK's energy and oil produced 36% of the UK's energy.
Modern, renewable energy sources
- To try to reduce its contribution to climate change, the UK has focused on improving its renewable sources of energy.
- But, in 2017, nuclear power produced 8% of the UK's energy and wind, solar & hydroelectric power put together produced 3% of the UK's energy.
Test yourself on The UK's Energy Mix
What % of the UK's energy came from gas by 1980?