[BrianC]

Shortages of gas, which generated 40 per cent of UK electricity last year, could mean planned three-hour blackouts in some areas to protect supplies for heating homes and buildings, system operators warned. From a report:
The margins between peak demand and power supply are expected to be sufficient and similar to recent years in the National Grid Electricity System Operator's (ESO) base case scenario for this winter. But in the face of the "challenging" winter facing European energy supplies following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the grid operator is also planning for what would happen if there were no imports of electricity from Europe and insufficient gas supplies. To tackle a loss of imports from France, Belgium and the Netherlands, there are two gigawatts of coal-fired power plants on stand-by to fire up if needed to meet demand.

People are being encouraged to sign up with their electricity supplier for a scheme which will give them money back on their bills to shift their use of power away from times of high demand to help prevent blackouts. That could mean putting on the dishwasher or washing machine overnight or charging an EV at off-peak times. In addition, larger businesses will be paid for reducing demand, for example by shifting their times of energy use or switching to batteries or generators in peak times. The "demand flexibility service" will run from November to March, and it is expected to swing into action 12 times whatever happens to ensure people get rewarded for being part of the scheme - with additional use if needed to protect supplies. It is hoped it will deliver 2GW of power savings to balance supply and demand.

Without the scheme, there might be days when it was cold and still â" creating high demand and low levels of wind power -- when there would be a potential need to interrupt supply to some customers for limited periods, National Grid ESO's winter outlook said. The ESO also warned that if there is not enough gas to keep the country's power stations going in January it could force distributors to cut off electricity to households and businesses for three-hour blocks during the day. It said the number of people left without electricity would depend on how many gas power stations would be forced to shut down because there is not enough gas. But this was the worst-case scenario that the grid operator presented. Its base case assumes that when Britain needs more electricity, cables that link the country to its European neighbors will be enough to keep the lights on. It does not assume that there is any "material reduction of consumer demand due to high energy prices."
https://news.slashdot.org/story/22/10/0 ... -shortages

[evilgenius]

That's too bad about the coal plants. I like to track what is going on in the Arctic. The sea ice was recovering with the pandemic decrease in activity. It may have been a grand opportunity squandered.

I do think that LNG is going to work. There is great incentive for it to, and regulation is going to step back and allow it, I'm sure. Because the greatest hindrance to anything is how we judge each other. When we all believe in doom, we judge ourselves. If we can't do that, we gang up on some weaker group, so that we can see ourselves as better in comparison to them. Normally, that shows up in regulation, stymieing everything that we would have thought should have happened.

We'll see about the UK. The wrong party is in charge over there right now because the people need to judge. Look how they tossed the woman out, and don't want to pay her the ex-PM package. But she only came with what they have to give. They don't have any answers. And the party that traditionally had those answers is also lost.