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What's Happening to the power ?
Energy Blackouts on the way
Daily Mail Oct 2003
Electricity bosses have warned of major blackouts in the coming years as coal and nuclear power stations are axed.
Suppliers have seen their profit margins cut in recent years as competition in the market has forced prices down. Since privatisation in 1990 electricity bills have been driven down so much that energy companies say they cannot afford maintenance work, they have little cash to put back into the system to keep existing power stations open and build new ones.
Shortages are looming as nuclear stations and coal-fired plants come to the end of their life.
Many of Britains biggest power stations will be shut down as `green` legislation from Brussels is introduced in 2007. Scottish Power, Powergen and Innogy are among those who have warned the system will hit disaster within four years. A Powergen spokesman said `In the next 4 years, we will not have the power stations to generate enough electricity. Concerns are that there is no incentive to build power stations and many are ageing. On top of this there is the a new directive which will be the end of old coal-fired plants`.
Electricity bosses have warned of major blackouts in the coming years as coal and nuclear power stations are axed.
Suppliers have seen their profit margins cut in recent years as competition in the market has forced prices down. Since privatisation in 1990 electricity bills have been driven down so much that energy companies say they cannot afford maintenance work, they have little cash to put back into the system to keep existing power stations open and build new ones.
Shortages are looming as nuclear stations and coal-fired plants come to the end of their life.
Many of Britains biggest power stations will be shut down as `green` legislation from Brussels is introduced in 2007. Scottish Power, Powergen and Innogy are among those who have warned the system will hit disaster within four years. A Powergen spokesman said `In the next 4 years, we will not have the power stations to generate enough electricity. Concerns are that there is no incentive to build power stations and many are ageing. On top of this there is the a new directive which will be the end of old coal-fired plants`.
Ian Russell, Chief Excecutive of Scottish-Power, which serves customers in scotland and England, said he was not prepared in to invest in building new palnts without Government support.
Bosses are demanding the Government reconsider its hardline against intervention in the market, which was reformed two years ago as part of Labour's manifesto commitment to deliver lower prices.
Public concerns have arisen as we have seen power cuts in Italy, the United States and London during August 2003.
It emerged this month that the power 'safety cushion' -the amount of spare electricity at peak times- was at its lowest level since 1995/1996.
A spokesman for consumer group Energywatch said `Margins are getting tighter so any more closures could bring us close to the edge.
Energywatch believes that the whole industry must get together to work out how to secure supplies by investing in alternative means of generation.
It is alarming that there is no energy policy, No policy means no power. Ministers have have not analysed the risk of power cuts this winter and beyond.
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