Electricity demand to set record lows this Summer

In an article by The Telegraph earlier this week, it was speculated that National Grid may have to turn off many power plants this Summer due to electricity demand to set record low.

National Grid has a duty to the whole of the UK to supply electricity, to both homes and commercial sites. The supply of electricity is wholly dependent on keeping the grid balanced at a steady 50Hz, however in times of high or low demand, the grid becomes unbalanced and needs to find a way of either finding more power or reducing the power.

Power stations to help with balancing act

“Large power generators must be prepared to offer a fair price to turn down their electricity output if power flows threaten to flood the grid during periods of particularly low demand, such as weekend afternoons or overnight.” explains the article.

Demand on the grid has been dropping over the last few years due to the increase in decentralised energy production and reduced consumption. Solar panels have played a huge part in this, as well as the use of energy efficient appliances and machinery, making it more and more difficult for National Grid to balance the grid through power station management alone.

Turn-up for the summer

The National Grid trialled what they call the “turn up” scheme last Summer, which meant that at times of excess power on the grid, National Grid worked with key aggregators, like Endeco Technologies, and large industrial energy consumers to use up the excess electricity and essentially take it off the grid. These large energy consumers saw the benefit through sums of up to £150,000 for participating in an event when required.

National Grid estimate that this scheme could save consumers collectively up to £500,000 over the summer.

Does your business use large amounts of energy?

If your business uses large amounts of energy, and could benefit from joining one of National Grid’s balancing services schemes, contact one of our energy professionals on 01923 431 638 or email service@gridbeyond.com

This article first appeared on The Telegraph