Energy infrastructure needs renewing

Energy interruptions occur when there is a lack of gas storage

Nils Pratley
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 7 January 2010 20.01 GMT
If a tale of energy shortages during winter sounds familiar, that's because it is. The story takes matters to a new level – factories in the north-west and east Midlands have had supplies cut off. These industrial customers knew the risks when they signed "interruptible" supply contracts in exchange for lower tariffs, but it is nevertheless shocking that the infrastructure is so creaky that these contracts even exist. The basic problem is a lack of gas storage facilities.
National Grid also mentioned transmission problems, but that's a variation on the same theme. Transmission problems become significant when there is an inadequate buffer in the system. The buffer is meant to be storage – as has long been recognised.
As far back as 2002, the old DTI select committee said: "Concerns over bottlenecks in the gas transmission system seem to us to be well founded. The government should keep under review the need for more gas landfall facilities and the advisability of greater diversity in the siting of such facilities. It should consider whether the market alone will provide the necessary incentives, given the lead times needed for such construction projects."
In 2008, the business and enterprise committee concluded that little had changed: "Significant additional storage, beyond that currently planned, is needed … It is now an issue of national importance and should be a high priority in domestic energy policy."
In 2010 we are grateful that recession, by reducing industrial demand, has not made these problems worse. Yes, let's have investment in renewables – but let's also renew the parts of the existing infrastructure that will still be needed.