A post on Facebook claims that the closure of Britain’s last coal-fired power plant in September 2024 caused the October rise in the U.K.’s energy price cap.
Facebook/Screenshot
Verdict: Misleading
Energy experts confirm that the increase in natural gas prices, not the closure of the coal plant, was the primary factor behind the energy price cap rise.
Fact Check:
The U.K. closed its last coal-fired power plant, Ratcliffe-on-Soar, on September 30, 2024, marking the end of coal power production in the country, according to BBC. The closure marks the first time in 142 years the country is not relying on coal for energy, the outlet reported.
Soon after, a Facebook post suggested that the coal plant’s closure led to the October 2024 increase in the energy price cap, which limits the amount British consumers can be charged per unit of energy. “In today’s news…. UK closes it’s last coal fired power station. Also in today’s news…. UK raises energy price cap by 10%,” the post’s caption reads.
However, energy experts and Ofgem, the U.K.’s energy regulator, state that the primary reason for the increase was the rising cost of wholesale gas, driven by international market factors, geopolitical tensions, and extreme weather.
Natural gas accounted for 34.7% of the UK’s electricity generation in 2023, while coal had fallen to just 1.3%. Simon Cran-McGreehin, head of analysis at the Energy & Climate Intelligence Unit, explained that the coal plant’s closure had little to no impact on the price cap since coal made up such a small part of the energy mix. Aoife Foley, a net-zero expert from the University of Manchester, added that coal imports are also subject to global price fluctuations, similar to gas.
Ofgem confirmed that the decision to increase the price cap was made between mid and late August 2024, well before the coal plant’s closure. The spike in natural gas prices was the leading cause, not the end of coal power. (RELATED: Did Tesco and Shell Redirect Energy From a Solar Farm Meant to Power 100,000 Homes?)
Reuters and Check Your Fact have previously debunked misinformation about the energy prices in the UK.