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< Earnings down at Scottish Power, fossil output up at SSE | Commission proposes closure of uncompetitive mines >
France's 2015 generation gap 'could force up UK electricity prices'
News that France could struggle to meet peak demand as early as 2013 could force up electricity prices in the UK, according to energy consultancy McKinnon & Clarke.
The company was responding to a report published yesterday by French grid operator RTE, which said that by 2015 there could be a shortfall in total generating capacity in France of over 3 GW. The shortfall would be prompted by the same environmental regulations that will accelerate closure of fossil-fuelled power plants in the UK.
David Hunter, an energy analyst at M&C, said: "At a time when the UK is facing its own looming energy gap, the news that our neighbours across the channel are likely to demand imported power from us is likely to both drive up peak prices and tighten our own supply margins further. The UK market is linked to the continent's via interconnectors, and so that extra power will most likely go to the highest bidder."
The UK-France interconnector has a capacity of 2 GW. France's total capacity is expected to be 64 GW by 2015, RTE's report said.
M&C called for the government to accelerate preventative action and protect the UK's national energy interest, given that Britain will be competing with France for energy investment from the private sector.
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