That’s more a statement of fact than a claim, but climate obsessives often ignore inconvenient truths. The proposal is for ‘peaker’ type plants (like this) to replace some of the UK’s ageing baseload ones.
– – –
The UK will face “blackouts” without building new gas power stations, ministers have claimed.
The government has said that while it will continue to move forward with its net zero targets and a focus on renewables, gas was needed as a “back-up” – with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak saying climate goals must be reached “in a sustainable way that doesn’t leave people without energy on a cloudy, windless day”, reports Sky News.
Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho will outline the plans for new stations in a speech later today, which include a full review of the electricity market and changes to the law to make the plants ready convert to low-carbon alternatives.
But Greenpeace said the plan would make the country “more dependent on the very fossil fuel that sent our bills rocketing and the planet’s temperature soaring”. [Talkshop comment – hyperbolic nonsense].
Electricity demand is increasing as the UK electrifies things like heating and cars, and the population grows.
Officials have been reviewing how to make sure supply keeps up with demand, is reliable, and reaches the right areas of the country.
Today the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said it was clear the UK would need new backup gas capacity to provide power that can be fired up on demand, on days when it isn’t windy or sunny enough to get electricity from renewables.
That’s also because some gas plants are due to retire in the coming years.
The commitment to renewed unabated gas was long expected, and the energy industry welcomed the reassurance on how to direct its investment.
But some analysts warned extra gas is the wrong solution to the question of how to meet increasing demand and provide flexibility, and said it was a reflection of failure in other areas of energy security policy.
‘We must be realistic’
In a speech today at Chatham House, Ms Coutinho is expected to say: “There are no easy solutions in energy, only trade-offs.
“And so, as we continue to move towards clean energy, we must be realistic.”
[Talkshop comment – ‘net zero’ and realism don’t co-exist too well].
Full report here.
Tallbloke's Talkshop 
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak saying climate goals must be reached “in a sustainable way that doesn’t leave people without energy on a cloudy, windless day”
Like we had before renewables and ‘climate goals’, or own goals.
oldbrew says: March 12, 2024 at 10:34 pm
“Like we had before renewables and ‘climate goals’, or own goals.”
This is ‘below the belt’ OB!
Please ‘state’ your ‘concerns’, ‘considerations’ and modes/methods for ‘amelioration’!
Your post isn’t/hasn’t the possibility of any ‘credible response’ within the ‘climate community’.
The collection of ‘UK “food waste” by ‘local councils’ is ‘limited’ by the ‘UK financial input’. However, the introduction of ‘digestion centers’ that ‘regurgitate’ recently ‘evolved’ ‘matter’ into a processed ‘evolution’ for ‘sustainability’ are more likely to ‘provide/evolve’ ENERGY/DNA from the ‘human “waste” ‘that provided this contamination. In the first instance.
Kind regards, Ray Dart (AKA suricat).
Blackouts weren’t a pressing issue in the days of power stations, before renewables.
Baseload gas power stations are no longer built, due to being forced out of the market by giving renewables priority access to the national grid, making gas unprofitable. These new peaker plants are different tech, and charge high rates when called on.
oldbrew says: March 13, 2024 at 9:24 am
“Blackouts weren’t a pressing issue in the days of power stations, before renewables.”
Oh yes they where OB!
Clacton-on-Sea had a ‘diesel generator’ on ‘standby’ for when the ‘grid’ failed. It became the (now failed) ‘Avenue Club’.
I can’t understand your logic here because ‘blackouts’ were ‘persistent’ during the years following the second world war.
Kind regards, Ray Dart (AKA suricat).
These new plants are designed to run as synchronous condensers most of the time earning money from providing inertia and reactive power control. As renewable market share increases the grid de-stabilises. In South Australia they had to install 4 units to keep their tiny grid working.
https://www.energymagazine.com.au/sa-synchronous-condensers-installed/
In Sunak’s proposal these will be Open Cycle Gas Turbine that can decouple their generators/ power up as required largely as this unit already operates. https://www.tritonpower.co.uk/indian-queens
Relatively quick and cheap to build but expensive to run when generating. However, payments for balancing services will inevitably make them attractive to investers.
It’s all a performance. The Tories will lose in the Autumn and Labour will cancel this. Sunak knows that, its justan attempt to save a few seats in the coming wipe-out. The way the Toties are going, they might actually get wiped-out.
For the abuse the tories have done, I hope they do get wiped out, BUT, but BUT do you think I want to see Labour getting the chance to cause as much ( or more) carnage for another 4 years ? Lets just get rid of the Uniparty and the fractions / decimals too. Point taken. Have to make a Reform.
CO2 demonisers write:
Labour said it supported the plan, pointing out that replacing gas-fired stations was not at odds with a decarbonised power system. It said that the Climate Change Committee had made clear that there needed to be a role for gas in a decarbonised grid to back up renewable energy in times of cold weather and low wind speeds.
https://www.carbonbrief.org/daily-brief/uk-new-gas-power-stations-to-keep-lights-on-during-net-zero-transition/
The new plants will be peaker plants that only run for a limited number of hours per year during high demand, and charge high rates.
WEDNESDAY 13 MARCH 2024
UK carbon capture strategy ‘outdated and unrealistic’ as costs doubled to £20bn
https://www.cityam.com/uk-carbon-capture-strategy-outdated-and-unrealistic-as-costs-doubled-to-20bn/
It was unrealistic well before it became outdated.