Plugging the gap

Simon Harrison on the UK energy debate

UK energy policy is once again under the spotlight with supply security and climate change topping the agenda against the background of the latest government review.
It is generally accepted that new generation capacity is required to replace ageing plant and meet environmental targets set by government, but is there a simple solution to meet the UK’s long and short term requirements? Energy director Simon Harrison gives his view on the debate.

Simon Harrison“In the UK higher gas prices have caused the market to revert to coal generation 24/7 with gas providing for the morning and evening peak periods. However, over the next ten years about a third of coal capacity will have to close owing to tightening Euro-pean environmental regula-tions,” explains Simon.

“With the closure of older small nuclear plant, there’s been a lot of talk of new nuclear facilities but it would take 15 to 20 years to develop and construct a sizeable nuclear fleet, so nuclear can’t help solve the short term problem. Renewables and energy efficiency can help and have been encouraged by the government in the last five years but progress has slowed and they will not solve more than a part of the problem over the next ten years.

“Nobody is going to invest in a new power plant if someone might change the rules that govern its profitability in the near future.”
Simon Harrison

“The only realistic solution for the short term is to build more gas-fired plant and to improve resilience through more gas import routes and more capacity to store gas,” continues Simon. “The market is responding but the current energy review has affected investors’ confidence. Nobody is going to invest £300 million in a new power plant if someone might be changing the rules that govern its profitability in the foreseeable future. Clean coal could also play a small role within this timeframe but large scale capture and storage of carbon will take longer.

A positive outcome of the energy review in Simon’s opinion would be to redouble focus on delivery of energy efficiency and renewable energy, which could be dominant technologies in the long term. “We now know the barriers to making renewables happen – planning, permits and transmission networks plus a need for more investment in technology,” he adds, “and the challenge is to devote the right effort to removing these barriers.

“As for new nuclear, it’s a technically proven, safe but expensive technology that comes with political risks around waste and general public perception. Ignoring it is a mistake and work needs to be done to plan projects and license designs so that firm decisions to build or not build nuclear can be made immediately prior to when plant construction would have to commence in around ten years’ time, depending on politics, the environment and competing technologies.

“With no clear solution it’s important that a wide range of options is moved forward including demand reduction measures for all forms of energy including electricity.”