Cottam Power station

Over 50 years of electricity generation

A beacon on North Nottinghamshire’s skyline for the past 52 years, Cottam power station ceased generation on Monday 30 September 2019.

Since it started generating in 1968 the station has produced nearly 500 terawatt hours of electricity – enough to single-handedly power the UK for around 18 months. It was originally designed for 30 years of operation.

The station will now enter into the decommissioning stage, the purpose of which is to remove hazards in advance of demolition which is scheduled to begin in early 2021.

Cottam facts

Cottam coal-fired power station was commissioned in 1968 by the Central Electricity Generating Board and had a generating capacity of 2,000 megawatts (MW).
Coal burn 183,000,000 Te
Number of trains to site – 150,000
Total Hours generation – 1,099,000
Start-ups – 13,145

Latest news

Monday, September 30, 2019

Cottam Power Station powers down after half a century

Cottam power station has switched off for the final time. Since it started generating in 1968 the station has produced nearly 500 terawatt hours of electricity – enough to single-handedly power the UK for around 18 months. It was originally planned to operate for 30 years

Read more about Cottam Power Station powers down after half a century

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Contact Cottam

Cottam address:
EDF Energy, Cottam Power Station, Retford, Nottinghamshire DN22 0NP
Reception: 01522 894015
Community requests/Media requests: Kate Cusick 07875113935 or Katy Jarvis-Morgan 07875119263

Location

Power station - Cottam

Cottam and West Burton A are coal-fired power stations near Retford in Nottinghamshire, capable of generating enough electricity for approximately 7.5 million UK homes.

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Notes

UK Fuel Mix disclosure information, published by Government Department BEIS, recognises electricity from wind, solar and nuclear fuel produces zero carbon dioxide emissions at the point of generation.

The zero-carbon electricity purchased is supplied into the National Grid. Customers receive electricity via the National Grid, not directly from zero-carbon generators.

The below table summarises zero-carbon generation by company demonstrating EDF generating 29.4%. The data supporting the table below and the % values is sourced from a mixture of industry settlement data and the UK government renewable obligation database.

ZERO-CARBON GENERATION SUMMARY BY COMPANY		2019	2019
Supplier name	zero-carbon	GWh of zero-carbon electricity generation	% of overall zero-carbon electricity generation
EDF	zero-carbon	42,233	29.4%
CENTRICA	zero-carbon	10,176	7.1%
RWE	zero-carbon	3,656	2.5%
E.on	zero-carbon	3,704	2.6%
SSE	zero-carbon	6,360	4.4%
ScottishPower	zero-carbon	4,609	3.2%
Drax	zero-carbon	13,573	9.5%
Orsted	zero-carbon	6,869	4.8%
EPH	zero-carbon	2,430	1.7%
Equinor	zero-carbon	1,091	0.8%
Vattenfall	zero-carbon	1,602	1.1%
Fred Olsen Renewables	zero-carbon	1,130	0.8%
Macquiearie	zero-carbon	371	0.3%
Ventient Energy	zero-carbon	594	0.4%
Statkraft	zero-carbon	403	0.3%
Eneco	zero-carbon	347	0.2%
Falck Renewables	zero-carbon	250	0.2%
RES	zero-carbon	305	0.2%
SGRE	zero-carbon	371	0.3%
Greencoat	zero-carbon	371	0.3%
Community Windpower	zero-carbon	371	0.3%
OTHER	zero-carbon	42,816	29.8%
TOTAL	zero-carbon	143,632	100%

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Over 50 years of electricity generation

Cottam Power Station powers down after half a century

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Power station - Cottam

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