POWERCUTS

Powergen

PRICE RIP-OFF
Electricity firms have been blasted for ripping off consumers in a tough report by MPs. While the wholesale price of electricity has plunged 40% since 1998 domestic customers have seen bills fall by as little as 1p in the pound. The report by the public accounts committee is scathing of regulator Ofgem. MP Edward Leigh said, “Ofgem cannot be sure suppliers are not lining their own pockets at consumers’ expense.” MPs also warned that a harsh winter could see blackouts as the grid struggles to cope with demand.

BLACK-OUT
Central Networks, formerly East Midlands Electricity, announced that a shut-down would take place between 12.15pm and 1.15pm. A spokeswoman said buildings in Bold Lane and Colyear Street, including Debenhams, would lose electricity for a split second while 47 other properties in the area would be without electricity for longer. She said the cut was required to enable workers to replace a piece of equipment in the Strand sub-station which was discovered not to be working properly.

POWERCUTS

Power Station The lights haven't started going out yet but Britains power industry is in crisis. Our dwindling North Sea supplies mean we will be importing gas by 2006 and oil by 2010. Our nuclear power stations are so old that, by 2025, just one of them will be working. The Government had the chance to address the unfolding emergency and blew it. Britain must replace a quarter of its electricity supply, currently generated by nuclear, in the next two decades. But electricity generators face huge financial problems after a collapse in prices, and none can afford to build new power stations. Britain's biggest power station Drax, in North Yorkshire, is more than Ł2billion in debt. Wind, solar and water energy will not be enough, and in 20 years time we could face regular power cuts.

Millions of homes in Britain could be hit by blackouts this winter if there is a prolonged cold snap. The prediction was made by the National Grid, which revealed that the "safety cushion" between peak electricity demand and generating capacity had fallen to dangerously low levels. It said that the danger of blackouts would be highest in the four weeks either side of Christmas. The problem stems, in part, from generating companies mothballing power stations because of the slump in wholesale electricity prices that followed a government shake-up of the market.

The report said that if there were blackouts this winter the cause would be the shortage of power stations. Britain came close to a power cut in the winter of 2002 when the safety cushion between demand and available capacity fell to 2% on the evening of 10 December. In normal circumstances, the grid likes to have a safety margin of at least 20%. This winter, the report calculated that the margin would fall to 7%, with 55.7 gigawatts of peak electricity demand against 59.5 gigawatts of available capacity.

Ofgem, the energy regulator, sought to play down the situation, saying that National Grid Transco "does not anticipate power cuts this winter". But Alistair Buchanan, Ofgem's chief executive, conceded that blackouts could not be ruled out. "No system can ever offer a 100% guarantee when faced with unexpected events," he said. Ofgem insisted that "market mechanisms" would ensure that there was always enough generating capacity to meet demand, and said that mothballed plants had already started to come back on line in response to a 25% increase in wholesale prices in the past 12 months.

Patricia Hewitt, the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, has taken personal charge of Government plans to prevent blackouts this winter. Ms Hewitt chaired a meeting of senior Whitehall officials, which was convened to draw up contingency plans to avoid power cuts, should a prolonged cold snap test the electricity grid to the limit. As Secretary of State she has a legal responsibility for maintaining security of supply, along with the energy regulator Ofgem.

DTI sources said contingency plans to prevent power cuts would be one of the department's highest priorities this winter. These involve encouraging generators to make more plant available and keeping gas-fired power stations in operation. Plans to build 21 new power stations to prevent Britain being plunged into darkness by power cuts are in chaos. Some of the stations have not been completed despite being given the go-ahead FIVE YEARS AGO. Energy Minister Stephen Timms admitted that new power stations were either "not built" or "under construction".

Next >>>