National Grid activates two coal-fired power facilities. Despite snow and ice, the British energy system operator has no fears about blackouts.

Snowfall in the UK causes cancellations of trains and planes, causing travel disruptions. The energy system operator in the United Kingdom has placed two coal-fired power plants on emergency standby to keep the lights on during a cold period.

The National Grid Electricity System Operator announced that two “winter contingency coal units” are going to be available on Monday. When temperatures drop below zero and demand surges.

It stated that the public “should continue using energy as usual.”

As ministers sought to bolster the energy supply in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the government asked the owners of coal-fired power facilities to delay closing plans this summer. Before the invasion, Russia was a significant supplier of natural gas to Europe; hence, the invasion shook global energy markets and sparked a hunt for alternatives.

Drax is the owner of the coal facilities in North Yorkshire that are set to begin operations on Monday. They will only run when National Grid instructs them to, and Drax will be unable to sell the electricity on the open market.

According to the Met Office, Sunday’s low temperature in Marham, Norfolk, was -8.6 degrees Celsius.

On Monday morning, the Met Office issued yellow weather warnings for snow or ice for vast portions of the country, with snowfall disrupting transport in south-east England, including London, and northern Scotland. Sunday’s power prices in the UK reached an all-time high due to the temperature drop. National Grid activates two coal-fired power facilities to try and reduce energy in the UK.

In recent years, Great Britain’s electrical generation system has swiftly shifted away from coal, with its first coal-free day occurring in 2017, followed by a month without coal-powered electricity in May 2020. To replace it, the use of carbon-free renewables has expanded rapidly, but the UK has also increased its dependence on natural gas, a fossil fuel. After Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, this dependence became troublesome.

Low winds and gloomy skies necessitated a heavy reliance on petrol combustion for energy generation during the weekend in the UK.

According to data from National Grid, petrol generated 62% of energy in the UK on Saturday. 14% was generated by nuclear power plants, while 8% and 1% came from wind and solar energy, respectively. Coal represented 4%. (Northern Ireland has a different energy system.)

National Grid ESO emphasized that its request for the coal-fired power plants to heat up did not indicate that it feared blackouts on Monday. National Grid ESO said, “This precaution should instill confidence in the public over Monday’s energy supply.” “As a sensible system operator, the ESO has these tools to operate the network normally, and the public should continue to utilize energy as usual.”