Record wind and solar generation helped the UK avoid nearly £1 billion in gas imports in March 2026, cutting exposure to volatile fossil fuel markets during a period of geopolitical strain
The United Kingdom avoided £1 billion in gas imports in March 2026 thanks to record wind and solar generation, according to an analysis by Carbon Brief.
Last month, wind generation in the UK reached a new high, rising 38% from a year earlier, while solar output came close to matching the levels seen during last year’s exceptionally sunny spring.
Taken together, wind and solar generated 11 terawatt-hours of electricity in March 2026, up 28% year over year and setting a new record for the month of March. That output spared the country from importing 21 TWh of gas, equivalent to nearly 18 fully loaded liquefied natural gas tankers, which would have cost close to £1 billion at current prices inflated by the war in Iran. Carbon Brief based its calculation on a gas price of £44 per megawatt-hour.
Over the same period, record wind and solar generation helped push gas-fired power output down 25% from a year earlier, reaching its lowest level ever recorded for March. Under the marginal pricing system, the electricity price in each hour is set by the cost of the last unit of generation needed to meet demand. Because gas is the most expensive source, it often ends up setting the price for all electricity sold during that period, including power generated by wind and solar, which have far lower production costs.
Gas set electricity prices nearly 25% less often than in march 2022
Even so, in March 2026 wind and solar reduced the number of hours in which gas set the electricity price by nearly 25% compared with the same month in 2022, when fossil fuel prices surged after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Renewables are therefore helping curb import dependence at a time of acute geopolitical instability.
