UK breaks power imports record

• Record 26 TWh of power imported so far this year – enough to power 8 million homes
• French nuclear helps keeps UK lights on as Britain waits for decisions on nuclear future
• “We shouldn’t have to rely on other countries to keep the lights on.” – NIA Chief Executive

The UK has imported a record amount of electricity from Europe in 2024 to help meet the country’s power demand, new analysis by the Nuclear Industry Association (NIA) has found.

Imports have accounted for 16% of UK power in the first 9 months of this year, enough to power close to 8 million homes, with a record 26.3 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity being imported from January through September. It beats the previous high of 24.6 TWh set in 2021 by three months, according to NIA analysis of data from the National Energy System Operator (NESO).

Imports had the third biggest share of the electricity mix in six of the last nine months. June saw the highest ever proportion of imported electricity to Britain, making up 19% of the mix, with gas at 20%.

Since January 2020, the UK has been a net exporter of electricity in seven out of 58 months. By 2030, the UK aims to go from being a record importer to a net exporter of electricity.

The system operator has said that the UK tends to import power because it has higher baseload prices than in Europe. The UK has shrinking clean baseload capacity of just 5.9 GW, as nuclear stations retire, whereas France has more than 61 GW of nuclear power to underpin its grid.

Nuclear from France is the leading source of imported electricity to the UK. Net electricity imports from France to the UK totalled 12.7 TWh last year according to government data, and  France’s grid is made up of around 70% nuclear. Norway is the second largest exporter of power to the UK, mainly from hydro.

Tom Greatrex, Chief Executive of the Nuclear Industry Association, said:

“We shouldn’t have to rely on other countries to keep the lights on, and we certainly shouldn’t leave our energy future up to their decisions. We desperately need more baseload power, so we need to get on with a full new nuclear programme, starting with Sizewell C and then stations big and small at Wylfa and other sites. That way, Britain gets the jobs, the energy and the investment, and not just the bill. ”