UK grid ready for emergency measures to fight power squeeze

BRITAIN’S National Grid said it would pay customers to use less power on Monday (Jan 23) evening, and that it had asked for three coal-powered generators to be warmed up in case they are needed as the country faces a snap of cold weather.

The group said that it would activate a new scheme called the Demand Flexibility Service where customers get incentives if they agree to use less power during crunch periods.

The service, which has been trialled but not run in a live situation before, would run from 5 pm to 6 pm on Monday, it said, adding that the move did not mean electricity supplies were at risk and advised people not to worry.

The measures were announced in order to “ensure that everyone gets the electricity they need”, Craig Dyke, head of National Control at National Grid ESO, told BBC Radio on Monday, adding that 26 suppliers had signed up for the scheme.

Below freezing temperatures have been recorded across much of the UK in recent days with the national weather service, the Met Office, last week issuing severe weather warnings for snow and ice.

National Grid’s Dyke said consumers could make small changes to make money by reducing their energy usage, such as delaying cooking or putting on the washing machine until after 6 pm.

National Grid said in December that over a million British households had signed up to the scheme, which is one of its strategies to help prevent power cuts.

Prices for the evening are the highest since Dec 21 and some customers were asked to conserve power. 

The drastic measures are a stark reminder that Europe’s power crunch is far from over and highlights the danger of the UK’s steadily shrinking electricity generation buffer. It also makes the nation more reliant on imports from France, which is struggling with its own nuclear crisis and cannot export as much as it used to. 

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UK power surges to record as sub-zero chill sends demand surging

“Our forecasts show electricity supply margins are expected to be tighter than normal on Monday,” evening, a spokesperson from the ESO said. “These are precautionary measures to maintain the buffer of spare capacity we need.”

UK wind output is poised to plunge below 2,000 MW on Monday evening, according to a Bloomberg model. 

Maxar Technologies forecast that temperatures in London will be as low as minus 2 deg Celsius on Monday, and the sub-zero temperatures are causing demand to spike. 

Consumption is expected to peak on Monday evening at 44.7 GW, up from 42.2 GW on Sunday, grid data show. BLOOMBERG