Britain's rush to Net Zero means it will be luck rather than good management if the lights stay on this winter, a leading analyst has warned.
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analyst → mean → Net
European nations face a series of energy shocks in the coming weeks thanks to the Iran war, record low gas reserves and a water shortage in Norway that threatens to cut crucial exports of hydro-electric power.
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that → face → power
But Britain is uniquely vulnerable because the dash for wind and solar power and power station closures mean we now import electricity from our neighbours, said energy consultant and parliamentary adviser Kathryn Porter.
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Porter → mean → neighbours
‘We’ve put ourselves in a position where we can’t meet our own demand, particularly when the wind doesn’t blow,’ she told The Mail on Sunday.
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she → put → Sunday
‘We can cope with these risks individually, but combined they are a threat.
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they → cope → risks
It means we have to be lucky all the time.
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we → mean → ?
‘Every single winter we’re making this gamble, and eventually we’ll lose.
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we → make → gamble
It could well lead to higher electricity prices and, if we finally run out of luck, blackouts.’
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we → lead → luck
Her warning follows Ofgem’s announcement that the energy price cap will rise in October by £60 to £1,723, and experts have predicted that household bills are about to surge.
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bills → follow → 1,723
Households face more cost-of-living misery this winter after the cap on energy bills regulator was hiked by 4 per cent (Stock photo)
Shadow energy minister Andrew Bowie said the looming electricity shortage was ‘increasingly dangerous’ and urged Labour to resume drilling in the North Sea.
‘It is a threat to our security and prosperity,’ he told the MoS.
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he → face → MoS.
‘We’re more exposed than any other country – it’s deeply worrying.
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it → ’re → country
‘It demonstrates the folly of failing to exploit our own resources.
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It → demonstrate → resources
If we got the Jackdaw gas field up and running now, we could be pumping gas by Christmas.’
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we → get → Christmas
On Friday it was reported that a decision on whether to open the giant Jackdaw North Sea gas field near Aberdeen is likely to be postponed until after the Holborn And St Pancras by-election.
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decision → report → election
Meanwhile, a National Audit Office report warns that delays to a £70billion upgrade to the national grid will cost consumers billions of pounds because the transmission system cannot cope with the rapid shift to renewables.
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system → warn → renewables
The NAO estimates that attempts to decarbonise the grid by 2030 will add £1.9billion a year to bills.
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attempts → estimate → bills
Britain’s plight could get worse if, as feared, neighbouring governments prioritise domestic prices.
Norwegian politicians are already demanding export controls, arguing Norway should not be treated as ‘Europe’s battery’.
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Norway → fear → battery
‘There’s a danger governments will prioritise their own consumers,’ said Ms Porter, who advises MPs on the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Energy Studies.
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who → ’ → Studies
‘They will stop exporting any spare capacity and the market will break down.’
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market → stop → capacity
This year’s heatwaves mean that reservoir levels are lower than for 20 years – and falling.
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levels → mean → years
Britain’s ageing electricity infrastructure and the move away from traditional power stations to unpredictable wind and solar energy are adding to the problem.
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infrastructure → age → problem
In June, whistleblowers at the National Energy System Operator (Neso) claimed the national grid had been so short of electricity that, at one point, it breached safety limits, prompting an independent inquiry.
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it → claim → inquiry
One
Neso engineer told the MoS that power cuts are now a ‘mathematical certainty’.
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cuts → tell → MoS
He claimed the engineers charged with keeping the grid stable are ‘flying blind’, armed with minimal information, yet obliged to deal with thousands of unpredictable wind and solar generators around the country.
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engineers → claim → country
Ms Porter said: ‘If this winter sees another long spell of high pressure – and no wind – like the one we’ve just seen in the summer, then Britain will be in an extraordinarily difficult position.
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Britain → say → position
‘You don’t have to have too many things go against you for the grid to break down.
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grid → have → you
Losing one big power station or one big interconnector would be enough.
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Losing → lose → station
‘Who, in the cold light of day, could honestly say this is a sensible way to run things?’
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this → say → things
The Aporia
