Blame fossil fuels, not renewables, for the UK's winter energy crisis

Environment | Analysis 20 September 2021

By Adam Vaughan

People successful the UK look higher vigor bills this winter

Evgen Prozhyrko/Getty Images

Soaring wholesale state prices person near the UK successful an vigor crisis, with fears for susceptible households arsenic bills rise, a question of vigor firms folding and c dioxide accumulation for nutrient supplies deed arsenic fertiliser plants halted operations.

In the 1990s, the UK made a “dash for gas”. In caller years, it has leaned connected the substance to easiness the phase retired of an adjacent much polluting fossil fuel, coal. That makes the UK heavy reliant connected state for energy, with 86 per cent of homes utilizing it for heating and much than a 3rd of energy supplies coming from state powerfulness plants.

The main crushed for the existent situation is simply a shortage of state supplies, owed successful portion to outages successful accumulation successful Norway and elsewhere, and request from Asia. It is also, to a overmuch lesser degree, owed to debased output from upwind powerfulness and a occurrence past week leaving a UK-France powerfulness nexus offline. Prices and c emissions are up, with ageing ember and mothballed state powerfulness stations firing up again. Wholesale state prices are up 176 per cent since the commencement of the year, and powerfulness prices successful the past period up 266 per cent connected the mean this year.

The UK authorities is reportedly considering offering loans to vigor companies that are struggling to header with the higher wholesale prices, owed to some the government’s headdress connected however overmuch firms tin complaint consumers and a deficiency of fiscal hedging against the increase.

It didn’t person to beryllium this way. Energy crises similar these are a cyclical diagnostic of being astatine the mercy of volatile quality of fossil substance prices, taxable to planetary and geopolitical factors beyond the power of immoderate 1 country. Countries that person prioritised home debased c vigor are overmuch much insulated to specified shocks.

The UK should cognize this: its past situation was lone successful 2018, erstwhile the concern wasn’t arsenic dire arsenic today, but wholesale state prices were surging and galore vigor suppliers were going bust, leaving nine to prime up the bill.

Gas prices volition beryllium the main occupation this winter, but misguided solutions person been thrust to the fore. Today’s Daily Telegraph proposes fracking to boost home state production. But companies spent years failing to present shale state nether UK regulations. Elsewhere, some blasted the vigor terms cap. Others call for levies supporting renewables to beryllium shifted disconnected energy bills, which radical would inactive request to wage done taxation.

The UK’s nuclear powerfulness commercialized assemblage says atomic is the answer. Yet a caller atomic works would instrumentality astatine slightest a decennary to build, and the financing exemplary being considered would permission vigor billpayers shouldering the outgo if operation goes implicit fund and schedule.

In uncommon unity, the UK authorities and its governmental absorption look to realise the lone existent semipermanent hole is to chopped the UK’s reliance connected state by backing renewables and low-carbon alternatives to state boilers, specified arsenic vigor pumps.  Energy curate Kwasi Kwarteng, who met vigor firms this morning, said the situation shows the value of the UK’s program “to physique a strong, home-grown renewable vigor assemblage to further trim our reliance connected fossil fuels”. Ed Miliband of the Labour enactment said the concern was a effect of nonaccomplishment to put capable successful “zero-carbon vigor supplies” and vigor efficiency.

The UK has a bully way grounds of supporting renewables and bringing down their cost. More subsidies for upwind and star powerfulness volition beryllium awarded successful auctions starting successful December. The scorecard connected vigor ratio is worse. A bid of schemes to insulate homes person been botched, the astir caller being the Green Homes Grant, which was axed having improved lone a tenth of the homes it was designed to.

A accidental for redemption whitethorn travel soon. The authorities is owed to people a caller UK strategy connected vigor and buildings, which could assistance the existent vigor situation being repeated, if it provides bold policies connected ratio and low-carbon heating.

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