Guest Post by Willis Eschenbach
I guess having electricity when you need it is sooooo last century … UK families will have to get used to “only using power when it was available”. That constant electricity at home was dangerous anyhow, the unending hum of the wires can drive a man so insane that the only way to cure him is to make him head of the National Grid …
UK persons … comments?
w.
[Update, for those who believe the above is a faked article, I had Green Sand send me a photo and another scan of the actual newspaper. ~ ctm]
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I’m afraid it’s probably correct.
We have a website http://www.bmreports.com/bsp/bsp_home.htm which summarises electrical demand versus where it comes from. This winter in the UK was the second colcest on record. I’m 61 years and can only remember a few as cold and with as much snow. Of course with cold comes electricity demand and on one day our electricity grid recorded the highest ever demand. But with cold weather comes still conditions and hardly any sun. So our stupid government’s hope – windmills and solar cells – contributed almost nothing that day. I did hear we were buying electricity from French nuclear plants via a cable under the English Channel.
My solution? We live in a rural area so it’s woodburners, coal fires, and we have two generators.
The UK gov is to build new gas fired power station in Derbyshire, the first of many.
Found this, any comments, annual daily mean from 1960 to 2006 increased in spring by 1.57 C, summer 1.7 C, autumn 1.21 C and in winter by 1.95 C,
Daily max over same period has risen by 1.77 C, daily min by 1.36 C.
This must be the only place on the planet where T min in an urban environment has risen less than T max.
http://www.wmpho.org.uk/resources/Health_Effects_of_Climate_Change_in_the_West_Midlands_Technical_Report.pdf
It almost happened this past winter then the wind failed to blow the wind turbines and the Scottish were forced to use French nuclear energy. Expect to see more stories like this in 20 to 30 years time. ;O)
Warmists, please read the following and realise that windpower is NOT the answer.
http://news.scotsman.com/news/39Green39-Scotland-relying-on-French.6672024.jp
So windmills can not provide baseload power supply – whoda thunk it?
Perhaps the clue lies in the senior UK cabinet post: Chris Huhne – Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change.
An oxymoron, or an Oxford moron?
At least the landowners (like our PM’s father-in-law) who profit from this evil will be readily identifiable when the blood does flow in the streets
When I read an article like this I despair of what this country has become!
We used to be the workshop of the world, now it looks as if we are becoming the workhouse of the world.
I don’t know how much longer this will go in without some form of tarring and feathering being meted out to some of our leaders, but mostly UK citizens are law abiding so i dont think that it will happen unfortunately.
I just checked the NETA site and the contribution of wind to the grid is 0.4%!
So much for bird slicers
More details are here. I would not put too much stock in the accuracy of the T.D. story.
National Grid chief says 2011 is ‘pivotal’ year for UK energy market
Power market reforms will determine whether the UK can meet its energy and emission targets, warns Steve Holliday
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/mar/01/national-grid-steve-holliday-energy-market
“Ending is better than mending….”
Brave New World – Aldous huxley
Throw away those nasty old coal and nuke plants! Join the Brave New World! The new solar cells and wind turbines will stimulate the economy and everything will be fine. Now, take your soma….. delicious soma.
Luckily for the US, the other 49 states are largely isolated from the stupidity of California. 🙂
All I can say is c*^$$+&**”! [snip, snip ,snip and snip again]
We, in Sweden, are now the 2nd in the European ‘list’ of paying most of net income for electricity, behind Bulgaria (this because B has a lower avg. income). Yet we DO have a production capacity of appr. 160 TWh/y (last year usage was app 132 TWh). Productions are ~ 48/48% hydro/nuclear, remaining ~ 2 % is partly imported, partly covered up by firing up reserve plants, all to cover up for a totally, really totally!, miss-management (incompetenced based) of the (deFacto non-existent) energy-policy in this country over the last ~ 20-25 years!
We live in a country that has ~ 4-5 months/y cold and dark – the last periods have really proved that fact! – and ~ 30% of the living area is electrically heated…! Prices are going up like moon rockets and our brain amputated minister of energy (about identical w the US ms Jackson/EPA) ‘recommends/advices’ people to insulate their houses more… God grief! Her name is, by the way, Maud Olofsson.
Still, Brgds from Sweden!
//TJ
There was a cable failure in central London in August 2003. The ensuing chaos even led to an enquiry:
http://legacy.london.gov.uk/assembly/reports/pubserv/powercut.pdf
“4.1 The power cut in London lasted for just over 30 minutes, yet the disruption that
followed lasted for the entire night. Members of the Committee witnessed the
chaos at first hand as they tried to travel home or to other engagements. The
question on our minds was how could this be happening in London after all the
reassurances given to Londoners post 9/11.”
“Recommendation 1
We recommend that Ofgem together with the DTI monitor and inspect the National
Grid’s programme of equipment review.”
Sure, make sure there is plenty of power transmission capacity assuming adequate generating capacity at the other end.
Joe P will not pay much attention to security of supply so long as the lights come on when the switch is flicked. The main issue is price.
Just wait the first day of power rationing by rota disconnection. The BBC and the Sun (tabloid) will gorge themselves on the latest tale of the blindingly obvious being mishandled by the incompetent.
And guess what will be at the top of the political agenda.
A new public enemy will be routinely whipped by the media. The bankers will gladly pass-on the baton and quietly collect their bonuses in peace and quiet (or should that be cold and dark).
All aboard the “Wind and Solar Express”, next stop: the Middle Ages. /sarc – ish
I used the phrase “barking mad” only the other day, in another comment – now you can all see what made us Brits invent the saying. And remember, this guy is not even government, just a company boss who does this sort of thing for the government.
Britain gets more electricity from France than from “green” sources.
See: http://appinsys.com/globalwarming/WindEnergy.htm#UK_Fail
One question: Do you have a link to the article in the Telegraph?
I can’t find the actual article online.
I was just looking for the tar and feathers but couldn’t find them because I have no light in the back.
Signs of things to come …
These eco-loonies should be locked up before they do any more damage.
You are correct. The difference between the Third World and the UK during this past December and January wast the terrible cold. The UK could not handle it as many more people would die from cold than mild, warm, Third World temps. As for the poor in Nepal and Mongolia it is something they have geared themselves for.;O)
Someone needs to invent a machine that turns otherwise useless biomass into physical work. It should probably have a nice, stable base so it doesn’t topple. Four legs seems about right. & it should have strong carrot & apple tropism built in so that reward/punishment feedback is simple to implement. Then all we need to do is build another machine to supervise & clean up the waste.
The optimistically uninformed here that blame the problem on greenies just don’t get it that the problem right now is the beginning of the great fossil fuel shortage. Yeah, the anti-nuke nuts don’t help, but even if they went away last year, nukes wouldn’t contribute in much less than a decade. Both oil and NG are going to be a problem in Europe, especially with uncertainties like Libya, and probable global cooling. The USA is not far behind.
This is a joke right? Thats why I cant find the article online.
“As a society, we all need to be clear about what we can and cannot afford” he (Steve Holliday – Chief Executive of National Grid) said.
May I suggest that we “as a society” cannot afford extremely highly paid “no can do” Chief Executives?
“We are going to change our own behaviour and consume it when it is available”
No Mr CE, because “as a society” we are not going to let you and or our government make your product “exclusive”.
Get your act together and have the guts to tell it as it is. That you can guarantee supply, cheaply, profitably and effectively provided the government allows you to do so.
To spell it out I respectfully suggest that you pee or get off the pot.
Pylons or underground are the least of your problems. Fuel availability and security of supply are and always must be your priority. You need to have a secure balanced mix of nuclear, coal, gas and renew etc. Please stop hiding behind these maniacal government ideologies and for once tell it as it is. You will be absolutely amazed at how much support you will get.
Either get a grip or move over, maybe now is not the time for a Holliday.
Reagan said it best. If they put the government in charge of the Sahara, there soon would be a shortage of sand.
If there is no shortage, governments create them to accumulate power, punish their enemies, reward their friends.
I have purchased a warm coat, a torch and some candles.
Dear AQ42’s MP
It is apparently reported in Wednesday’s Daily Telegraph that:
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2, 2011
Era of constant electricity at home is ending, says power chief
[snip]
The situation where a permanent electricity supply is withdrawn is wholly unacceptable; indeed I am old enough to remember how such a failure led directly to the fall of the Heath government. As a physics graduate I believe that there are plenty of ways to prevent this, and I would therefore urge you to oppose any such steps to the fullest extent.
Yours sincerely
AQ42
[who is, on a side note, now profoundly impressed by the OCR abilities built into Microsoft Onenote 2010]