Britain came ‘unsettlingly close’ to rolling power cuts this week, reveals ex-minister – and should brace for blackouts_Nhy
Britain should brace for blackouts as the country becomes increasingly reliant on renewable energy, a former Cabinet minister has warned.
Lord Frost raised fears about the net-zero crusade after the UK came ‘unsettlingly close’ to rolling power cuts on Wednesday evening.
Energy experts said the ‘near miss’ during the cold weather was the ‘tightest day the GB electricity market has seen since 2011’.
Amid freezing temperatures, the UK’s power grid operator – National Energy System Operator (NESO) – issued an alert on Wednesday for electricity providers to bolster output.
It warned there was an insufficient buffer to keep the country powered, and experts later said the power market came ‘within 580 MW of demand control or a blackout’.
The National Grid struggled with a lack of wind power, no solar power during the night and interconnector outages.
To make up for the shortfall, grid operators had to spend up to 50 times the normal cost of electricity to keep gas power plants running.
Lord Frost, writing in the Telegraph, said: ‘On Wednesday evening we came unsettlingly close to rolling power cuts. It may yet happen, on the next cold night of the year. Perhaps tonight.’
Freezing mist, snow and sub-zero temperatures in Northwich, Cheshire, on Thursday
Sir Keir Starmer and Ed Miliband visit an offshore platform for wind turbine construction
The UK’s power grid operator issued an alert on Wednesday for electricity providers to bolster output. It warned there was an insufficient buffer to keep the country powered
He warned: ‘This won’t be the last cold day this winter. Maybe the complacent energy authorities will be better prepared then. But the situation will only get worse over time.
‘The more renewables we rely on, the more of our capacity won’t deliver on cold dark nights, and the more we will need to find elsewhere. There is no guarantee interconnectors will fill the gap, since cold windless nights don’t stop at the UK border, and every country will look to its own needs first.
‘By 2030, for this rickety Heath Robinson arrangement, you will be paying towards £20billion a year extra in subsidies, in maintaining back-up grid capacity, and more. That, is around £700 per household every year.’
Lord Frost said the net zero drive is ‘a dangerous and expensive insanity that will lead the country to disaster if it is allowed to continue’, adding: ‘Get your candles and blankets ready.’
Independent energy consultant Kathryn Porter said the events on Wednesday should be a ‘wake-up call’ for ministers.
She explained: ‘[Wednesday] saw a blackout near miss in what turned out to be the tightest day the GB electricity market has seen since 2011.
‘Wind power was 2.5 GW through the evening peak, solar was (obviously) zero and there were significant interconnector outages leaving expected capacity at just 5.7 GW.
‘Had just one large power station tripped this evening, demand control would have been a real prospect.’
Shadow energy secretary Claire Coutinho warned that ‘we came very close to blackouts and at one point were paying an eye-watering £5,500/MWh to keep the lights on’.
‘Last year I set out plans for more gas power plants and the largest expansion of nuclear in 70 years, but this has all been ditched by Labour. We were widely criticised for starting a Net Zero reset, but we need cheap, reliable energy.’
