If gas supplies run short, households all throughout Britain might see three-hour rolling blackouts in January and February, according to the National Grid CEO.
Should Britain be unable to get sufficient gas supplies from Europe, the company’s chief executive, John Pettigrew, warned that rolling power cuts may need to be implemented in January and February. He said that the blackouts would take place on “very, really cold days” throughout the week.
Pettigrew cautioned that Britain’s gas-fired power facilities, which provide a sizable amount of the country’s electricity, are facing a significant fuel shortage when speaking at the Financial Times’ Energy Transition Summit.
This would put an excessive amount of load on the system, perhaps cause severe energy shortages, and need coordinated blackouts. It would also result in decreased imports of power from Europe and slower wind speeds for wind turbines.
The National System’s Electricity System Operator (ESO), which earlier this month warned that scheduled three-hour disruptions could be necessary to prevent the grid from collapsing, reiterated Pettigrew’s warning.
However, in order to impose blackouts, both the government and King Charles would need to provide their consent.
The possibility of blackouts brings to mind the 1970s, when strikes by railroad and mining employees compelled Ted Heath’s administration to implement scheduled power cutbacks in order to save energy.
To assist save costs and lower the likelihood of power outages this winter, energy regulator Ofgem advised British consumers to use less gas and electricity.
In the meanwhile, National Grid is putting up a program that will compensate people and businesses for lowering their consumption when there is a shortage of energy.
According to a spokeswoman for the government, the UK has a reliable and varied energy grid.
“To further reinforce this position, we have put preparations in place to ensure supply, and National Grid, working with energy providers and Ofgem, will introduce a voluntary service to reward consumers who lower consumption during peak hours.”
However, according to industry sources, Britons are already storing up on portable generators and torches in addition to winter apparel, thermal underwear, and candles in preparation for the worst-case scenario.
Sales of generators increased by 203% and those of torches and head torches by 43%, according to statistics comparing the first 11 days of October 2021 to the same time this year, according to Toolstation, a division of Travis Perkins, the largest construction products supplier in Britain.
A Toolstation spokesman noted that the generators can be used to power electrical devices like lamps, fan heaters, and TVs. “Although it’s far from certain that the National Grid will have to resort to blackouts this winter, it’s clear customers are preparing for this worst case scenario,” the spokesman said.
The Toolstation data is consistent with a study released by market research firm Kantar last week that said Britons were stocking up on candles and duvets.
John Lewis, a department store giant, said last week that individuals were hoarding dressing gowns, gloves, and warm underwear.
Last week, when images emerged showing every window in their almost empty headquarters brilliantly lighted up hours after employees had departed, National Grid was called a hypocrite.
Their multi-million dollar Warwick office was purchased last Monday and “lit up like Blackpool illuminations.”
Pictures taken after 7.30 p.m. revealed that every office in the enormous headquarters had lights left on after hours, which caused unhappy residents to accuse the company of “rank hypocrisy” in light of its warnings about energy shortages.
Peter Kearns, a 49-year-old local office worker who works close by, said: “It made my blood boil when I discovered it; it’s rotten hypocrisy at its finest.”
The National Grid of all people should be setting an example to the rest of the country – now more than ever – since the area is lighted up like Blackpool illuminations.
“Other workplaces make care to turn off the lights before they leave for the day, so they should do the same, particularly while they are discussing winter blackouts,” the speaker said.
They seem to be doing nothing at all to halt the collapse of the National Grid while instructing us all on how to do it.
It simply seems like a smack in the face to the rest of us when our bills continue to be outrageously high, in my opinion, that they are not taking their own advise.
‘Our Warwick headquarters has operational control rooms for gas and electricity where engineers operate in shift patterns 24/7 to keep the lights on and gas flowing across the United Kingdom,’ a National Grid representative said.
The structure incorporates several energy-saving features, such as sensor-controlled lighting that automatically switches off when a room is unoccupied.