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Despite the UK;s National Grid warning about the possibility of planned blackout this winter, Nadhim Zahawi said that it is extremely unlikely.
The Minister for Intergovernmental Relations said ‘All I would say is we have a buffer, the same buffer as last year, and so I’m confident that come Christmas, come the cold weather, we will continue to be in that resilient place, but it’s only right we have looked at every scenario’
Mr Zahawi was asked about the UK’s resilience this winter amid potential shortages and the Minister claims that planned blackout this winter are “extremely unlikely” despite the warning.
He said “What the National Grid is saying is the extremely unlikely scenario where there are issues in Europe with the interconnectors and a very cold snap, so it’s extremely unlikely but it’s only right that we plan for every scenario.”
“All I would say is we have a buffer, the same buffer as last year, and so I’m confident that come Christmas, come the cold weather, we will continue to be in that resilient place, but it’s only right we have looked at every scenario.”
The Cabinet minister continued by saying the Government has continued to invest in gas with production being up by 26 per cent this year.
While sure families will be able to enjoy their Christmas, Mr Zahawi said several issues would need to “align in a bad way” for the UK to suffer shortages.
In a report, the National Grid said there was an “unlikely” scenario that the UK may face energy interruptions this winter.
If these did occur, power cuts may take place at peak times or potentially between 4pm to 7pm.
Asked on the potential of blackout on Thursday, Ms Truss said: “What we’re clear about is that we do have a good supply of energy in the UK, we’re in a much better position than many other countries, but of course there’s always more we can do and that’s why I’m here working with our partners making sure we do have a secure energy supply into the future.”
Although the UK does not receive much gas from Russia, any further developments in Europe’s supplies may have knock on effects for Britain, the National Grid said.
It is the most dire of three possible scenarios laid out on Thursday for how Britain’s electricity grid might cope with the worst global energy crisis for decades.
In the other two scenarios, the operator hopes that by paying people to charge their electric cars at off-peak times and firing up backup coal plants it can offset the risk of blackouts.
