Let's hope energy shortage does not mean a return to dark days of 1970s
When people talk about he dark days of the 1970s, it was very often literally that.
While it is easy to romanticise the era of Noddy Holder, great television programmes and long, hot summers, it was also a time when every household kept a stash of candles in case the lights went out, and electricity was rationed during the infamous three-day week.
It is therefore somewhat disturbing that bosses of Britain's energy operator are now warning of 'tight' days ahead over the coming winter, when the electricity supply will struggle to meet demand.
To put this into context, the National Energy System Operator (Neso) said that the amount of spare capacity had actually improved over the past five years, but warned that there would still be days,.particularly during December and January, when supplies would be short. It said that under such circumstances, it was envisaged that energy could be bought in from Europe. The body also said that capacity would increase as more battery storage came on stream.
While it is good that the industry has contingency plans, it should be noted that the rest of Europe has also been in the grip of something of an energy crisis since the war broke out in Ukraine. Germany, in particular, has been forced to abruptly end its dependence on Russian gas an oil, causing the shock in gas and electricity prices across the continent. And if mainland Europe is facing the same problems as us, can we really rely on it to meet our needs when those 'tight' days arrive?
Which leads us to wonder whether the rush towards net-zero has been fully thought through. While most sensible people agree that the switch to renewable energy is inevitable, we do wonder whether the industry was hasty in shutting down power stations such as those at Rugeley and Ironbridge. There is no doubt that they were at the end of their useful lives, but could they not have provided a useful back-up while Britain built up its battery storage capacity. Similarly, it seems odd that Britain is talking about importing energy from mainland Europe when our own supplies of North Sea gas and oil are being left untouched.
Net zero is coming, and no right-thinking person expected the transition to be painless. But it is reasonable to question whether some of the decisions were made in haste, and motivated more by ideology than pragmatism.
Let's hope the contingency plans prove sufficient. The last thing we want is a return to the dark days of 50 years ago.
