National Grid Live: GB Energy Mix Dashboard

Here are the key concepts and insights shown in our live energy dashboard:

Dashboard Metric	Explanation
Dashboard refresh rate	The dashboard refreshes every five minutes using the latest live data from individual generation sources.
Generation %	The percentage contribution of an individual electricity source relative to the total power being supplied to the National Grid. This can include energy storage and interconnectors when they are supplying electricity to the grid.
Generation GW	A measure of the electrical power being supplied to the National Grid, expressed in gigawatts. The National Grid is kept in constant balance, so this figure matches the total power being consumed or exported at that time.
Live percentage clean power	The live percentage of electricity generated from renewable and other low carbon energy sources.
Renewables	Electricity generated from naturally replenishing energy sources, primarily wind, solar, and hydro.
Other low carbon	Low carbon electricity sources that are not renewable, principally nuclear and biomass.
Other	Net electricity supplied by energy storage facilities and imports through international interconnectors.

What is the energy mix of the National Grid?

The energy mix of the National Grid refers to the combination of different energy sources supplying electricity to the grid at any given time.

The British National Grid receives electricity from the following sources:

Generators

Generators are the primary producers of electricity on the grid. They convert another form of energy into electrical power.

Generators connected to the National Grid include renewable sources, fossil fuel power stations and nuclear power stations.

Interconnectors

Interconnectors are high-voltage undersea transmission links that allow the import and export of electricity between Great Britain and neighbouring electricity systems.

Great Britain has interconnecting cables with France, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, Ireland and Denmark.

Energy storage

Energy storage facilities store electricity when there is excess generation on the grid and release it later during periods of higher demand.

On the British National Grid, energy storage capacity is provided by grid-scale batteries and pumped hydro storage facilities.

Where does the live National Grid data come from?

Our National Grid live energy mix uses real-time data produced by Elexon, the operator of the wholesale electricity market. Elexon is responsible for reconciling transactions between generators using precise energy meter readings.

In this role, Elexon receives live data from electricity meters installed at points where generators connect to the grid. Elexon provides an API showing live generation data that is refreshed at intervals of five to thirty minutes.

Data attribution statement

The National Grid live dashboard on this page relies on live Elexon BMRS data © Elexon Limited, copyright and database rights 2026. The following link provides the copyright licence agreement governing the use of this data.

What do the generation sources mean in the live dashboard?

This section provides an overview of the main sources of electricity generation used on the National Grid.

These sources have a significant impact on the annual British energy mix and are often displayed in the live dashboard above.

For each source, we have provided the most recent annual energy mix data published by the grid operator NESO.

Wind

2025 Contribution: 29.7%

UK wind farms are the single largest contributor to the National Grid’s energy mix.

Development of onshore and offshore wind farms is strongly supported by the Contracts for Difference scheme, which guarantees a fixed price for electricity generated by renewable developers.

The UK Government’s Clean Power 2030 plan relies on the construction of new large-scale offshore wind farms, such as the Dogger Bank wind farms, to provide a significant share of Britain’s electricity.

Gas

2025 Contribution: 26.8%

Gas power stations are fueled by the fossil fuel natural gas to generate electricity.

Despite efforts to decarbonise the national grid, Britain’s electricity system remains heavily reliant on gas-fired power stations, which contribute the majority of the carbon emissions associated with grid electricity.

Nuclear

2025 Contribution: 11.8%

Nuclear power stations provide a source of baseload low-carbon energy for the National Grid.

Unlike wind and solar power, nuclear power stations are not affected by weather conditions and therefore provide stable electricity generation, helping to balance the variability of renewable energy.

Two large-scale nuclear power stations, Sizewell C and Hinkley Point C, are currently under development.

Biomass

2025 Contribution: 6.9%

Biomass facilities generate electricity by burning organic materials to produce power.

Biomass generation on the National Grid mainly comes from converted coal power stations that burn compressed wood pellets instead of coal. The largest example in Britain is the Drax Power Station.

Solar

2025 Contribution: 6.5%

Solar power contributes electricity to the National Grid using solar photovoltaic (PV) panels that convert sunlight into electricity.

The contribution of solar to the energy mix comes from grid-scale solar farms and microgeneration from domestic and commercial solar panels.

Hydro

2025 Contribution: 1.6%

Hydroelectric power stations generate electricity using the movement of water to spin turbines connected to generators.

Britain has a small number of hydroelectric power stations, primarily located in mountainous regions of Scotland and Wales.

Why the energy mix changes throughout the day

The National Grid is a finely balanced system. To avoid blackouts and equipment failures, the electricity fed into the system must always equal the demand for electricity from all users.

The wholesale electricity market is designed so that a combination of the lowest-cost power sources is used to meet demand.

Here are the key factors that change the combination of energy sources used on the National Grid:

Weather conditions

The power output of British wind and solar farms is intermittent. On windy and sunny days, these generators produce electricity with almost no incremental cost.

Because the incremental cost of these power stations is low, they are typically prioritised by the market and feed in all the power they generate.

Import and export pricing

Undersea interconnectors allow electricity to be imported or exported depending on price differences between the National Grid and neighbouring countries.

When there is excess electricity in France, prices fall on its wholesale market, and traders move power through the interconnector onto the National Grid, where it can be sold for a higher price.

Changes in demand

Electricity demand follows a daily pattern driven by how people and businesses use power. Peak demand typically occurs in the late afternoon and evening, while demand is lower overnight.

Flexible generators, particularly gas-fired power stations, fill gaps between the output of renewables and baseload nuclear generation and the overall demand.

What percentage of electricity is renewable?

Our live National Grid dashboard shows the live percentage of electricity generation from Clean Power, which incorporates renewable and low-carbon sources.

Clean Power sources are those that produce very low or zero greenhouse gas emissions compared with fossil fuel generation. These include:

Energy source	Classification	Explanation
Wind	Renewable	Renewable because it generates electricity using naturally replenished wind energy, which is continuously produced by atmospheric processes.
Solar	Renewable	Renewable because it generates electricity using solar radiation from the sun, which is effectively inexhaustible on human timescales.
Hydro	Renewable	Renewable because it generates electricity from the natural water cycle, using flowing or stored water to drive turbines.
Nuclear	Low-carbon	Low-carbon but not renewable because it relies on finite uranium fuel resources. It produces very low greenhouse gas emissions during electricity generation.
Biomass	Low-carbon over fuel life-cycle	Produces carbon dioxide when burned but is classified as low-carbon because the carbon released is partially offset by carbon absorption during the growth of the biomass feedstock.

The UK Government’s Clean Power 2030 plan aims for clean power sources to produce enough electricity to meet 100% of Great Britain’s annual electricity demand, with at least 95% of electricity generation coming from low-carbon sources and no more than 5% from unabated gas-fired power stations.

National Grid - Live