From NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT

By Paul Homewood

Britain’s blackout prevention system has been dealt a blow after the billionaire known as the “Czech Sphinx” scaled back plans to build a new gas-fired power station in Yorkshire.

EPH, controlled by Daniel Kretinsky, previously set out plans to spend more than £1bn on redeveloping Eggborough’s coal power station by building two combined cycle gas turbine plants there, along with new battery storage.

The gas-fired plants secured government contracts to provide 1.5 gigawatts (GW) of power from 2026 onwards through the capacity market, a backup system meant to keep Britain’s lights on. This would be enough to power more than 2m homes.

However, EPH last month terminated one of the contracts, halving the amount of electricity it would guarantee to the grid, according to regulatory filings seen by The Telegraph.

Experts said the withdrawal threatened UK energy security unless the capacity was swiftly replaced, creating a headache for Ed Miliband, the Energy Secretary.

They also warned that Mr Kretinsky’s decision to scale back his ambitions was potentially an ominous sign about the viability of other gas plants, given the relatively high payments the Eggborough plants had secured.

Mr Miliband’s plan for a clean power system by 2030 relies on maintaining a fleet of gas power plants that function as last-resort generators, firing up when wind farms cannot provide enough power.

These generators are deployed through what is known as the capacity market and EPH secured contracts at Eggborough to provide power at £63,000 per megawatt starting from 2026 to 2027.

Tom Edwards, of the consultancy Cornwall Insight, said the contracts were some of the highest ever awarded. Under the 15-year deals, generators are paid a retainer on the understanding that they must be ready to switch on at a few hours’ notice if the National Energy System Operator (Neso), which manages the grid, orders them to.

He said: “We are expecting several [gas plants] to come to the end of their lives before 2030, so there would need to be new capacity to replace them and maintain security of supply.”

Kathryn Porter, an independent analyst at Watt Logic, said the Eggborough withdrawal had come “at a bad time” and could force grid operators to pay out even bigger sums.

https://uk.yahoo.com/finance/news/blow-energy-security-czech-sphinx-130000389.html