A new analysis finds that the UK’s electricity supply has become more British over the past decade and less dependent on energy imports.

The analysis from the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) has found that over the past ten years, the UK has become less reliant on imported fuels to generate its electricity, largely due to the rapid expansion of wind and solar power that use no fuels and so do not rely on foreign energy imports. Compared to 2014, when around 65 per cent of the energy used for UK electricity generation was dependent on foreign fuels, in 2024 just under 50 per cent of the electricity supply relied on net imports of energy.

Dr Simon Cran-McGreehin, head of analysis at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, said: “UK electricity is becoming more British and this is the net-zero emissions target in action, decreasing our demand for foreign gas by boosting homegrown renewables. Gas output from the North Sea has been falling for decades, but British renewables like offshore wind are stepping in to help generate more British electricity. The regulator’s own figures show any new drilling for gas will make minor difference to output, so its renewables that will have to do the heavy lifting on energy security, protecting us from the geopolitics around energy and actors like Putin.”

Gas accounted for around 30 per cent of the UK’s electricity supply in 2024, and last year, the Energy Crisis Commission found that the UK remains “dangerously unprepared” for another energy crisis because of its over-reliance on gas. The more that renewables can be deployed, the greater the energy security, and with a target of reaching clean power by 2030, the use of gas for electricity generation should continue to reduce to zero. However, to reach this, it will require a faster rate of installation of heat pumps and home insulation.

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