Imports of gas to the UK outpaced domestic production in 2011, for the first time
2011 saw a dramatic increase in imports of coal and gas to the UK, preliminary figures from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) show. And as North sea oil and gas production declines, the UK is becoming increasingly reliant on fossil fuel imports.
We have taken a quick look at what the new statistics show.
Gas: More imports, less from the UK
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(All graphs taken from the DECC update.)
The UK produces some gas domestically – mostly from the North sea. But North sea gas production peaked around the start of the millenium and is declining. UK gas imports overtook exports in 2004, and UK gas production continues to decline sharply.
According to DECC, production of gas was 20.8 per cent lower in 2011 than 2010, a bigger than-average drop which DECC attributes to “planned and unplanned maintenance work”. The longer term trend is a 7 per cent year on year reduction in UK domestic gas production, the department says.
The figures reveal that in 2011 the amount of gas the UK imported was larger than the amount of gas we produced here for the first time. However, because the UK also exports natural gas, net imports (imports minus exports) were still slightly lower than domestic production.
Over the last decade, the amount of gas the UK imports from other countries has steadily increased. According to an Ofgem report last November, the country now gets much of its gas from Norway, Europe and Russia through pipelines, as well as liquid natural gas (LNG) imports from places like Qatar, the world’s biggest exporter.
According to a 2012 report by BP, LNG imports made up about a quarter of total UK gas consumption in 2011, making the UK the world’s third biggest importer that year. On high demand days in winter, Ofgem said in its report that LNG supply overtook pipeline imports. This doesn’t look like it’s going to end any time soon – Ofgem expects gas supplies from European countries like Norway to decline in coming years.
Coal
Imports of coal in 2011 were 23.0 per cent higher than in 2010, at 32.6 million tonnes, despite overall demand for coal falling slightly. But nonetheless coal stocks – stored in the UK – fell in 2011 as power stations turned to cheap coal. We have previously noted that 2012 saw a very significant jump in coal use for electricity generation.
Image - Screen Shot 2013-03-28 At 10.35.03 (note)Coal provided around 30 per cent of UK electricity in 2011, and gas around 40 per cent, the figures show.
More recent government statistics show that in 2012 gas and coal traded places, as a boom in shale gas production in the USA lowered coal prices in Europe. This encouraged coal power plants due to close because of a piece of policy called the EU Large Combustion Plant Directive (LCPD) to burn through their remaining operating hours faster.
Renewables
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Renewables (including hydro power) saw a significant jump in relative electricity production in 2011, from 6.8 per cent of electricity in 2010, to 9.5 per cent in 2011.
The largest percentage growth in production was from offshore wind – 68 per cent. Onshore wind produced 46 per cent more electricity in 2011 compared to 2010, producing about twice as much electricity as offshore overall.
All the power sources DECC classes as renewable saw growth in 2011. There are more recent figures for the share of electricity coming from renewables available covering 2012, although they are slightly less detailed.