![Pinterest](https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https://uknews.evprotec.com/fossil-fuels-renewables-and-nuclear-the-uks-changing-energy-mix/&media=https://uknews.evprotec.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/127405938_roughimage2.jpg&description=Image source, Centrica To help tackle climate change, the UK has pledged to reach "net zero" - where no further planet-warming greenhouse gases are added to the atmosphere - by 2050. To achieve this, much less energy needs to be generated by fossil fuels and much more needs to come from renewable sources and low-carbon technologies. Experts say this would also improve the UK's energy security by reducing demand for oil and gas imports. Energy is used for various purposes , including heating and powering homes, businesses, transport and industry. In 2022, the UK imported about 37% of its energy . That represents a drop from nearly 50% in the early 2010s, but the figure is still higher than in the late 1990s, when the UK was a net exporter - meaning it sent more energy abroad than it imported. The UK imports proportionally less of its electricity - typically about 5%. In 2022 it was a net electricity exporter for the first time in 44 years, but this was largely because of French nuclear plant maintenance . In 2022, the majority of the energy used within the UK - 78.4% - came from coal, oil and gas. These are known as fossil fuels. That is down from 87.2% in 2012, mainly due to the declining use of the dirtiest fossil fuel, coal . Around one-fifth, or 20.7%, of UK energy use was from "low-carbon" sources in 2022. This is up from 12% in 2012. "Low-carbon" includes renewables such as wind, solar, hydropower and bioenergy, as well as nuclear. Nuclear is not considered renewable, but is classed as low-carbon because power stations do not directly release greenhouse gases during their operation. The output from nuclear energy has actually fallen by around a third in the past decade due to ageing reactors . Electricity generation accounted for around a third of the UK's total energy use in 2022. Of the electricity generated in the UK in 2022 : 40.8% came from fossil fuels 56.2% from low-carbon sources - including 41.5% from renewables and 14.7% from nuclear By comparison, of){kind=link}
To help tackle climate change, the UK has pledged to reach “net zero” – where no further planet-warming greenhouse gases are added to the atmosphere – by 2050.
To achieve this, much less energy needs to be generated by fossil fuels and much more needs to come from renewable sources and low-carbon technologies.
Experts say this would also improve the UK’s energy security by reducing demand for oil and gas imports.
Energy is used for various purposes, including heating and powering homes, businesses, transport and industry.
In 2022, the UK imported about 37% of its energy.