UK Grid Insanity

The energy chickens are coming home to roost. Closing down coal mines, blowing up coal-fired power stations, avoiding nuclear power and new gas developments, trying to replace them with grossly inefficient 'renewables' - and now picking a fight with the world's biggest exporter of energy. The whole self-inflicted disaster is going to hit home this autumn, and the electricity supply industry is desperately scrambling to find ways to cushion the hammer blow.

The National Grid Electricity System Operator of the United Kingdom, the main controller of the country’s power grid, is launching a scheme to offer rebates to consumers who avoid using high-energy appliances during peak times to reduce the risk of blackouts this coming winter.

According to the National Grid, households could be rewarded for not using certain appliances such as tumble dryers, dishwashers and gaming consoles during peak hours – between 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Rebates could be as high as six pounds ($7.06) per kilowatt-hour (kWh) saved. (Related: At least 75,000 Brits to stop paying utility bills in response to unfettered inflation.)

The National Grid is reportedly finalizing its plans for this rebate system. Once it is finalized, the operator will apply to the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem), the government regulator for electricity and downstream natural gas markets, for approval.

“We are developing a new service that will be available for consumers to benefit from across this winter and will be announcing further information soon,” said a spokesman for the National Grid.

Discussions about rebate programs came about as Ofgem plans to raise the energy price cap – the maximum price energy producers are allowed to charge households for each unit of energy they use – from 1,971 pounds ($2,320) per year to 3,500 pounds ($4,121) in October and then 4,200 pounds ($4,945) in Jan. 2023.

Experts further warn that, by April 2023, the energy cap could be raised to as high as 6,000 pounds ($7,065) per year for the average household as the global energy market remains in turmoil.

Faced with concerns that this rebate program is about forcing British citizens to ration electricity, a spokesman for the National Grid denied this, adding that it is “definitely not about people sitting in the dark or volunteering to be cold.”

“It is about doing the washing at a different time of (the) day, that sort of stuff,” said the spokesman.

Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi reinforced this claim when he said that rolling blackouts this winter are unlikely, as the British government is preparing contingencies for possible energy supply shortages.

According to the National Grid, only households with smart meters installed would benefit from the rebate scheme.

The program is based on a trial conducted by Octopus Energy earlier this year that gave the National Grid an indication of how the scheme might work in practice.

The company offered incentives to 100,000 households in return for voluntary reductions in energy usage. Consumers were paid as little as 20 pence ($0.24) for every kWh of energy saved.

Consumers were told to reduce their energy consumption during two two-hour windows, between 9 to 11 a.m. and 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Octopus said consumers saved an average of 23 pence ($0.27) per two-hour window, with some saving as much as 4.35 pounds ($5.12).

For the wider rebate program, those who cut back on their energy use will have the option of receiving credit on their energy accounts or having the cash transferred directly into their bank accounts.

The scheme could begin as soon as late October, when bills are set to rise. Ofgem has confirmed that it has not yet received any concrete plans regarding rebate programs. But the National Grid has already begun consulting with various energy firms.

Even before the rebate scheme takes effect, the government and energy suppliers are already advising households to voluntarily conserve energy. Some households with special Economy 7 meters or the equivalent could already save money by consuming electricity during off-peak hours.

In Germany, meanwhile, citizens are being urged only to wash their 'smelly bits' in order to 'beat Putin'. No word there, of course, of where the blame really lies: The political elite and their toxic green agenda.

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