Latest full day
Great Britain ran dirtier than its recent baseline.
The latest settled day averaged 148 gCO2/kWh, compared with a 30-day baseline.
+57.4 gCO2/kWh
2026-04-24
Britain is running particularly clean, with renewables contributing about 60.2% and imports are helping cover the gap.
Last refreshed 3 Jun 2026, 10:25. This page currently covers Great Britain, not Northern Ireland.
Carbon intensity now
86 gCO2/kWh
low
Renewable share
60.2%
Based on Carbon Intensity national generation mix
National demand
26,286 MW
Transmission demand
26,806 MW
Domestic generation
20,295 MW
Net imports
7,274 MW
Across interconnectors
Make It Local
Real-time Elexon fuel data grouped into consumer-friendly buckets.
Net imports: 7,274 MW
Wind
10,772 MW
39.1%
Gas
3,849 MW
14%
Biomass
2,391 MW
8.7%
Nuclear
2,321 MW
8.4%
Other
656 MW
2.4%
Hydro
320 MW
1.2%
Coal
0 MW
0%
Oil
0 MW
0%
Pumped Storage
-14 MW
-0.1%
Interconnectors
7,274 MW
26.4%
Forecast periods when the grid is expected to be cleaner than it is now.
10:00 to 19:00
40 gCO2/kWh
46 gCO2/kWh cleaner than now
0:30 to 10:00
49 gCO2/kWh
37 gCO2/kWh cleaner than now
Next embedded forecast from NESO
Wind forecast
2,847 MW
Solar forecast
3,437 MW
Recent total visible supply from Elexon half-hourly generation data.
North Scotland
very low
0 gCO2/kWh
South Scotland
very low
0 gCO2/kWh
Scotland
very low
0 gCO2/kWh
North Wales & Merseyside
very low
10 gCO2/kWh
South Wales
very high
244 gCO2/kWh
Wales
moderate
144 gCO2/kWh
South East England
moderate
118 gCO2/kWh
South England
moderate
116 gCO2/kWh
Grid History v2
Rio now stores long-range grid history, so this section can compare the latest day with the archive, surface cleaner and dirtier windows, and start checking forecast promises against reality.
Observed values are preferred where available, with forecast fallbacks used to keep the 30 days window legible.
gCO2/kWh
Historical chart data is unavailable.
Daily summaries make long-range comparisons easier to read than a raw half-hour trace.
gCO2/kWh
The latest full day averaged 148 gCO2/kWh, noticeably dirtier than the recent baseline.
Latest full day
148 gCO2/kWh
Coverage 100% · 24 Apr 2026
Vs rolling baseline
+57.4 gCO2/kWh
30-day avg 90.6 gCO2/kWh
Cleaner-than percentile
65.4%
Ranked #1,084 cleanest out of 3,132 days
Current streak
2 dirtier days
Measured against a 30-day rolling baseline
Volatility
0.7%
More volatile than this share of stored days
Demand / renewables
20.1%
National-only metrics are unavailable in regional scope
Rio is archiving forecast snapshots, but this accuracy view still needs a deeper archive before the comparisons become useful.
Matched half-hours
0
Forecast and actual overlap stored so far
Status
no forecast rows
This will flip to live metrics once the archive deepens
The lowest-carbon windows Rio can find inside the selected historical slice.
Rio needs a denser history window before this ranking can be shown.
The periods where the selected scope relied on the highest-carbon power in the same slice.
Rio needs a denser history window before this ranking can be shown.
These editorial cards are meant to be lifted into sharing surfaces, weekly recaps, and future “what changed?” modules elsewhere in the product.
Latest full day
The latest settled day averaged 148 gCO2/kWh, compared with a 30-day baseline.
+57.4 gCO2/kWh
2026-04-24
Historical context
That keeps a 2-day dirtier streak against the rolling baseline.
#1084 cleanest
Since 2016-03-01
Forecast tracking
Rio is already archiving forecast snapshots, but it still needs a deeper archive before the accuracy view becomes statistically useful.
0 matched half-hours
no forecast rows
Grid rhythm
Its volatility index was 7.371 against a recent average of 26.09.
7.371 volatility index
3132 daily summaries compared
Carbon Intensity API
National carbon intensity, 24-hour forecast windows, national generation mix, and regional comparisons.
Updated through 3 Jun 2026, 10:00
Elexon Insights
Real-time fuel mix plus national and transmission demand.
Updated through 3 Jun 2026, 10:25
NESO
Embedded wind and solar forecast context for the next settlement period.
Updated through 3 Jun 2026, 10:14
Contains BMRS data © Elexon Limited copyright and database right 2026.
Make It Local
This turns the dashboard from a national snapshot into something you can actually use for your home, your area, and your timing decisions.
Regional View
National Summary
The national dashboard tells the big story. The local view shows whether your area is cleaner or dirtier than the GB average, which region you sit in, and the better timing windows for flexible usage.
Current GB carbon
86 gCO2/kWh
low
Regional spread
244 gCO2/kWh
Gap between the cleanest and most carbon-intensive regions
Local Solar Context
Free PVGIS modelling for a standard 4.2 kW south-facing home system, layered onto the live grid view.
What you’ll get
Indicative output
Annual, monthly, and seasonal production for a standard home-scale system
Why it matters
Solar + grid fit
See how local solar potential interacts with cleaner windows and your region’s grid mix
What Changed
A meaningfully cleaner window is coming up
The best forecast window in the next 24 hours is about 46 gCO2/kWh cleaner than now, which is the clearest opportunity for flexible usage.
Gas and imports are doing a lot of balancing work
Gas is contributing about 14% of visible supply and imports about 26.4%, which usually means Britain is leaning on firm or imported power while wind and solar are lower.
Regional conditions are far apart right now
North Scotland is running about 244 gCO2/kWh cleaner than South Wales, which shows how uneven power flows can be across Britain.
Best Time For Me
Choose the type of home action you care about. Recommendations are based on forecast carbon intensity for the next 24 hours.
EV charging: best window
Good for a longer charging session if you can wait for a cleaner overnight window. Around 44.8 gCO2/kWh cleaner than now.
12:30 to 14:30
41.3 gCO2/kWh
EV charging: backup window
Good for a longer charging session if you can wait for a cleaner overnight window. Around 41.5 gCO2/kWh cleaner than now.
14:30 to 16:30
44.5 gCO2/kWh
Want roof-specific solar potential as well?
Use the same postcode in Rio’s quote flow to move from a grid view into property-level solar and battery potential.