Britain could be plunged into darkness this winter under a government crisis plan to combat an expected energy crisis.
Under the “reasonable worst case scenario”, the UK could suffer blackouts for several days in January under a perfect storm of cold weather and gas shortages.
Electricity capacity shortfall may be a sixth of peak demand, according to the government, Bloomberg said, citing people close with Conservative party planning.
This, coupled with lower-than-average temperatures and slashed electricity imports from Norway and France, could leave Britain exposed to four days at the start of next year where it may be forced to adopt emergency measures to save gas.
This comes less than a week after the Bank of England forecasted inflation to hit 13%, largely due to unprecedented energy prices, and predicted five consecutive quarters of recession from the last three months of the year.
European governments have been looking to conserve gas and increase storage after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
However, the UK government has been split into backing Liz Truss or Rishi Sunak, who have different opinions on how to respond, as they both compete to be the next prime minister.