Britain’s electricity system operator requested the country’s sole remaining coal power station come online on Monday, as warm temperatures prompt higher energy usage.
National Grid PLC (LSE:NG.)’s system operating wing (ESO) ordered Ratcliffe coal power station in Nottinghamshire to warm in the early hours of Monday morning, with the site expected to be ready to supply power by 2:25pm.
Hotter weather has led to a spike in demand for power, as households and businesses look to cool buildings with fans and air conditioning.
According to National Grid data, UK demand sat at 31.6GW on Monday morning, up from a weekly average of 26.2GW, while wind and nuclear generation had fallen by around 50% each.
Imports have also jumped from France, Belgium and the Netherlands, accounting for 5GW of the UK’s power on Monday morning.
A fault last week in an interconnector between Norway and Britain has halved capacity flowing between the two countries meanwhile, worsening supply woes.
As of ten o'clock, system costs placed the price of energy at £166.78/MWh, above the day ahead spot price of £101.10/MWh.
Uniper-operated Ratcliffe is the UK’s last remaining coal power station after Drax Group (LSE:DRX) and EDF closed the country’s five emergency backup plants earlier this year.
Part of the Ratcliffe station had been due to close in September last year but was kept open at the request of the government, with a new decommissioning date set for late 2024.