§ Mr. Woofasked the Secretary of State for Energy if he will make a statement on Her Majesty's Government's projection for the United Kingdom's energy supply and demand up to the end of the century; and whether there will be more energy available from the United Kingdom's own resources in the 1980s than will be needed for the United Kingdom's use.
§ Dr. John A. CunninghamThere are great uncertainties in forecasting so far ahead but the Department's projections suggest that total demand for primary fuels for energy and non energy uses could lie in the range of 500–600 million tons of coal equivalent (mtce) by the turn of the century. To meet this demand indigenous production of hydro-carbon fuels might contribute between 200 and 400 mtce. The balance would have to be made up from nuclear power, imported oil, renewable resources, or by further measures of conservation. We expect the United Kingdom to be a net exporter of energy during the 1980s.