Government downplays energy grid blackout risk amid extreme heatwave

Britain’s energy grid remained ‘stable’ with no imminent risk of blackouts during recent heatwaves, an energy minister has reassured, despite serious allegations of improper behavior by the National Energy System Operator (Neso).

The assurance comes after Neso issued its third electricity margin statement of the year last week, calling for more power generation at higher temperatures.

Excessive temperature puts stress on the electrical system, reducing the efficiency of nuclear power, gas and water cooling systems.

But shadow energy minister Claire Coutinho raised concerns about ‘numerous whistleblowers’ alleging inappropriate behavior at Neso during the June heatwave.

According to Ms Coutinho, whistleblowers claimed on June 23 that Neso ‘failed to meet grid security standards put in place to prevent power outages’.

They also alleged that the corporate affairs team ‘interfered in operational decisions’ and that ‘operational decisions were recorded in live documents without an audit trail’.

Energy minister Michael Shanks said the whistleblowers’ claims were being taken ‘incredibly seriously’ and ministers were contacting Neso and energy regulator Ofgem ‘to establish the facts’.

Neso has now asked an external law firm to conduct an independent investigation into the allegations.

Mr Shanks said the report would be handed over to the board’s head of risk and control and Ofgem “in the coming weeks”.

But the minister reassured MPs that power outages were “absolutely out of the question” as they were imminent.

He said: “The UK grid has remained stable throughout a period of unprecedented extreme heat.

“No customers were affected by tight electricity margins and Neso had a range of tools available to them to ensure our energy security.

“Great Britain has one of the most resilient energy systems in the world and the Government is working closely with Neso and the wider industry to ensure this resilience is continually maintained.

“Margin notifications, such as those issued by Neso during heatwaves, are standard operational tools that can be used to support energy security, and they have been used successfully to maintain grid stability.”

He later added: “We met the electricity needs on each of the days in question…

“I don’t doubt for a moment that it was difficult in some of those days, as it was throughout Europe.

“The answer is to invest more in the stability of the grid and basically tackle the question of why our temperatures are increasing year on year, which is climate change.”

The minister also warned that Ms Coutinho had “conflated” concerns raised by whistleblowers with the risk of power outages and described it as “absolutely irresponsible” to suggest that the energy system was at risk.

He said: “He actually deliberately confuses two things, the first being that he has questions put to him by whistleblowers which we will now certainly investigate.

“But secondly, he suggested that the power grid was in a situation where blackouts were looming, which is simply not true.

“And I can kindly tell him that it is absolutely irresponsible to suggest here and on social media that our energy system has been at risk of late.”

Ms Coutinho criticized the Government for calling her “frightful” and said: “This is nothing short of a disgrace, given the consequences of anxiety on people’s lives.”

He added: “Although the government has taken action on this situation, the investigation that has been initiated is a complete fraud.

“On June 23, there will be no consideration of whether the grid is being operated safely or whether there has been a breach of security standards.

“This does not grant anonymity to any control room operator who wishes to come forward. Those who are not selected by Neso management will have to ask those managers to participate if they have concerns.

“And remarkably, in a call to all staff on Monday, Neso’s chief executive prejudged the outcome of the investigation by saying the allegations were false, while senior management said the whistleblowers had let them down.

“Let me be clear: Whistleblowers who put national interests ahead of their own careers should not be vilified, but celebrated for their courage and integrity.”

Mr Shanks said he would not comment “on leaks from internal conversations that may or may not have occurred”.