Wednesday 20 October 2010

The lights will stay on vow major industry players

Jeremy Nicholson of the Energy Intensive Users' Group and David Hunter of M&C Energy Group are optimistic that the lights will stay on in the UK, even though they predict the energy crunch could be with us as soon as 2015.

However, at the European Future Energy Forum today, Mr Nicholson did set a more apocalyptic tone. "The UK government will not allow the lights to go out for the domestic user, but what does that mean for UK industry?

"If there is an energy crunch, the UK, due to its deregulated market structure, will see prices rise dramatically, which means that UK manufacturers will be non-competitive to their global competitors and in effect will shut down."

Both Mr Hunter and Mr Nicholson agreed that nuclear has to be in the energy mix, as renewables, and in particular wind, do not offer the secure energy source that is required for UK plc or UK citizens. The consensus was that the British government has to ensure the right investment in all energy sources - nuclear, renewable, fossil - and the planning for cost effective, secure energy sources are not delayed.