UK businesses given energy supply warning

Yesterday, the UK Met Office issued an 'Amber Alert', indicating that the risk of a severe winter is higher than usual this year. This came on the same day that CBI director general Sir Digby Jones warned that weather-related fuel shortages could pose a significant business continuity threat to UK companies.

WEATHER WARNING
The Met Office’s warning reads as follows:

“A prolonged, severe winter is one of the biggest threats to the efficient day-to-day running of the country. With this in mind, the Met Office has given advanced warning to many of its customers and partners to plan for a 'colder-than-average winter'. Using a traffic light analogy, the organisation has written to contingency planners in the Government — including the NHS and Highways Agency — and in the energy industry, as well as many others to put them on Amber Alert.

“Since 1995-96, winters in the UK have been mild, giving many the impression that mild winters are now the norm. Even an average winter could come as a surprise to many, although at this stage, it is not possible to issue specific details about a particular day, or location, over the winter season.

“The long-range forecast also signals a dry winter across much of the UK. A cautious approach needs to be taken at the moment, but, bearing in mind the lack of rain for the UK over the last 12 months, this factor may be more significant in the long run.”

FUEL WARNING
"If we have a cold winter, we are going to throw the switch, businesses will shut down, people will lose their jobs," Sir Digby Jones warned. "If we don't sort out our decrepit supply system, we are, this winter, going to run out of fuel."

According to the CBI, Britain has only 11 days' gas held in reserve to power industrial users during a hard winter. In comparison, other European countries keep an average of 55 days in reserve.

Britain’s energy supply problem has resulted from the decline in North Sea gas reserves and plans to import gas supplies from abroad not yet being fully implemented. The result of this is that, during the coming winter and the winter of 2006/2007, there will be a much higher than usual risk of fuel shortages. In a crisis situation fuel supplies for homes and communities will be given higher priority than supplies for businesses.

•Date: 27th September 2005 • Region: UK • Type: Article •Topic: BC general
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