City Hall and Transport for London are exploring the feasibility of powering the entire Tube network with renewable energy by 2030.
TfL is one of the UK’s largest consumers of electricity with a requirement for 1.6TWh per year, equivalent to the consumption of 437,000 homes.
Existing needs are met by the National Grid but under plans unveiled by Mayor Sadiq Khan, the Tube could in future buy its electricity directly from wind and solar farms.
TfL is exploring buying up to 10 per cent of its electricity from these zero carbon sources by Spring 2022, subject to market testing and approval from TfL’s Finance Committee.
Mayor Khan said: “As one of the single biggest purchasers of energy in London, it is important that TfL leads the way on green energy. This is a vital step towards my ambitions for TfL – and London – to be zero-carbon by 2030.
“Covid-19 has had a devastating impact but as we recover we want to make sure that we build a better, greener and more equal city.
“This work to secure cost-effective and renewable energy for the rail network, with ambitions to include the wider GLA group and beyond, will play a key role in London’s green recovery and accelerating action on the climate emergency.”
Lilli Matson, Chief Safety, Health and Environment Officer at TfL, added: “TfL is already a world leader in many environmental initiatives and we are constantly striving to do more to lessen our carbon footprint and help tackle the climate emergency.
“As one of the largest electricity consumers in the UK, we have a duty to explore fully the contribution that renewable energy can make to running our services.
“This early market engagement will help us better understand generator preferences, their impact on price and their ability to de-carbonise our future power requirements.”
