Energy storage must not be overlooked on the road to net zero

New Statesman​

7 hours ago

Photo courtesy of Centrica
Cliché dictates that us Brits love nothing more than talking about the weather.
But weather's role in our lives is shifting. No longer just a great conversation starter, we're becoming increasingly reliant on it for powering our homes, businesses, transportation and heating. Over the last 12 months, renewable energy in the form of solar and wind power has combined to provide about a third of our electricity.
Nuclear gives us 15 per cent, biomass and hydroelectric a further 8 per cent, and we import around 14 per cent from our European neighbours. The remaining 30 per cent comes from natural gas – almost exactly the same as from renewables. Gas is what keeps the lights on when the wind doesn't blow and the sun doesn't shine. It's what keeps over 90 per cent of UK homes warm during the winter.
Unfortunately, it is not as simple as doing away with gas quickly. Instead, we must find ways to decarbonise gas, because it will remain a crucial energy source for the UK for decades to come.
Too much of the energy debate has become polarised: gas versus renewables; hydrogen boilers versus heat pumps; affordability versus decarbonisation; right versus left. There is a lot of energy in the debate, but way more heat than light.
A net zero energy system must be affordable, secure, and sustainable. If we miss any of these three outcomes, we will have failed.
Centrica's Rough gas storage asset, 18 miles off the coast of Yorkshire, is at the heart of UK energy security – providing half of the UK's gas storage capacity. Without this storage buffer the UK is subject to far greater price volatility, unnecessarily pushing up consumer bills.
Our nearest European neighbours, many of which have ten-times the UK's gas storage capacity, are actively filling gas stores for the coming winter. As it stands the UK will go into the winter with significantly less gas in storage than over the last few years, leaving us at the mercy of global gas market price spikes – precisely the thing we are trying to avoid as a country.
An FTI study found that had Rough operated at full capacity it would have saved UK consumers over £5bn in an 18-month period over the peak of the energy crisis. £100 off annual energy bills, or a third of the government's promised £300 energy bill savings.
Since 2022, we've stressed the need for the existing regulatory support model used for infrastructure providing critical energy security to the UK such as interconnectors with Europe, to be extended to include Rough. It is a vital energy store for the UK, the biggest we have, and such a move would allow us to continue operating it for the long term.
Chris O'Shea: 'A net zero energy system must be affordable, secure, and sustainable.' (Photo courtesy of Centrica.)
At Centrica we are ready to invest £2bn of our own money in Rough, securing existing jobs in the North Sea and creating thousands of new well-paid jobs in both the construction phase and in the supply chain. A redeveloped Rough will reduce the UK's exposure to short term swings in global gas prices and increase the UK's energy security and resilience, underpinning the economy.
We have the cash in the bank – and we're itching to get going. But without a regulatory model we can't sign off such an investment. This isn't about taxpayer cash and it's not asking for anything new. This is about a level playing field for energy infrastructure, so as the government pushes hard to deliver growth, companies like Centrica can invest billions of pounds in the UK to help deliver energy and price security for homes and businesses.
Unlocking the redevelopment we're proposing isn't just a short-term play. Alongside the ability to store natural gas, we'll also develop the potential for hydrogen storage in the future. I'm convinced that the UK has all of the ingredients – the skills, the weather, decades of North Sea experience – to be a global leader in the hydrogen economy. This would allow us to control our energy destiny, and to once again feel the benefits of being a net energy exporter.
Rough is not a silver bullet for energy security, but it plays a critical role in increasing capacity and supply confidence in an uncertain world. We must learn from the mistakes of the past and get Rough ready to play a long-term role as the UK's energy safety net. That way, regardless of the weather, the outlook will be bright.
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