§ Mr. Laurence RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate she has made of(a) projected supplies and (h) projected usage of electricity for the coming years; and if she will make a statement. [153369]
§ Mr. TimmsLatest DTI projections of future electricity demand are set out in updated energy projections published in July 2003 and available on the DTI website: http://www.dti.gov.uk/energy/sepn/projections.pdf.
NETA places strong incentives on suppliers to contract for their customers' demand and also places strong incentives on generators to deliver the power that they have contracted to deliver.
§ Mr. CrausbyTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans she has to secure the continuity of the electricity supply. [153922]
§ Mr. TimmsThe Government attach great importance to reliable electricity supplies—reliable supply is one of the four key goals of energy policy as set out in the Government's Energy White Paper.
1361WWe are confident that a market-based approach for provision of electricity will work—there has been evidence of that this year, as mothballed plant has been brought back in response to earlier projections that of inadequate capacity. Indeed, National Grid Transco recently announced that the winter generation margin had increased to 21.6 per cent., indicating the ability of the electricity market to deliver secure supplies, including the maintenance of secure supplies during the recent cold weather.
If the market is to work, it needs confidence that Government will not intervene—we have said we will not intervene in the market except in extreme circumstances, to protect safety. That remains our position. But we are not complacent and, through JESS, we and Ofgem continually monitor developments and look for ways to improve the operation of the market.
§ Mr. CrausbyTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans she has in place to ensure that the power cuts that affected(a) areas of London and Kent on 28 August 2003 and (b) the West Midlands on 5 September 2003 will not re-occur. [153921]
§ Mr. TimmsOfficials in my Engineering Inspectorate monitor power failures attributed to the national grid and they liaise with staff in the transmission companies to ensure adequate remedial measures are put in place. At my request, inspectors recently completed a formal investigation of the major interruptions on 28 August and 5 September 2003.
The investigation has highlighted a number of issues in connection with the power cuts. The inspectors' conclusions and recommendations are being passed to the electricity companies concerned, so that they can take the necessary action to enhance the robustness of their networks, and so make such occurrences less likely. The Engineering Inspectorate will be holding discussions with the companies concerned and monitoring the action they take. It has powers to ensure compliance with any recommendations made.