Energy source: oil
Grain, an oil-fired power station in Kent.
What is oil?
Oil is a fuel found underground. It is very valuable because it can be made into many useful things, like petrol and plastics. Oil is sometimes used to heat homes and businesses, and it is also burned to generate electricity - although not in the same quantities as other fossil fuels.
How an oil-fired power station works
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- There are just two large oil-fired power stations in the UK (ie 100MW and above).
- Oil supplies 1.2% of the UK's electricity.
- Each oil-fired power station can supply the annual average electricity needs of around 1.8 million homes.
Advantages
- Oil is easy to transport by pipeline or ship.
- Oil-fired power stations can be built anywhere where there are good transport links and where there is a plentiful supply of cooling water.
- A large amount of electricity can be generated from one power station quickly.
Disadvantages
- Burning oil produces produces carbon dioxide, a gas which makes it harder for the Sun's heat to escape into space. This makes the Earth's atmosphere warmer and can cause problems like making countries hotter and drier.
- It also produces other emissions eg sulphur dioxide.
- Oil is not renewable. The world's supply of oil is running out quickly.
- New pipelines to transport oil can be costly to build.
Locations within the Energy Experience:
