Analysis: UK emissions fall 2.4% in 2025 as coal hits 400-year low
Why it matters: The UK is hitting historic low emissions, but the pace needs to double to meet net-zero goals.
- UK emissions fell to 364 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e) in 2025, the lowest since 1872.
- Coal use roughly halved, reaching levels last seen in 1600, largely due to the end of coal power and issues within the steel industry.
- Gas use dropped by 1.5% to a 34-year low, with reductions in heating for buildings and industry offsetting a slight rise in gas power.
- Oil use decreased by 0.9%, despite increased traffic, aided by over 700,000 new electric vehicles (EVs) on the roads.
- The 2.4% reduction is only about half of the annual cut needed to meet the UK's legally binding net-zero target by 2050.
The UK's greenhouse gas emissions plummeted by 2.4% in 2025, reaching a 150-year low, primarily driven by a historic decline in coal use and a significant reduction in gas consumption. This progress, detailed by Carbon Brief, puts the UK's emissions 54% below 1990 levels, even as its GDP nearly doubled.
