Tell the Government

[biffvernon]

EVIDENCE WANTED FOR NEW GAS GENERATION STRATEGY

2 MAY 2012

PRESS REF: 2012/056

The Government has launched a call for evidence to inform a gas generation strategy to deliver a secure and affordable route to a low carbon economy.
The strategy, announced on 17 March and confirmed in the Budget, aims to:
set out the role of gas in the electricity market
attract investment in gas generation
ensure energy security
meet the UK’s carbon reduction targets
make the best use of the nation’s natural resources.
The call for evidence provides a set of questions to help contributors frame responses.
These questions will also be used in discussions with industry and other stakeholders in advance of the publication of the strategy in the autumn. The call for evidence is open until the 28th June.
CALL FOR EVIDENCE QUESTIONS:

What are the main strengths and weaknesses of gas generation in helping deliver a secure, affordable route to decarbonisation through to 2020 and then by 2050?
What role can gas fired generation play in the future and what level of gas generation capacity is desirable?
What are the key factors driving the economics of investing in new gas-fired power generation and how are these factors likely to change?
What barriers do investors face in building new gas generation plants in the UK? What are the key regulatory uncertainties that may prevent debt and equity investors making a final investment decision in gas generation and supply infrastructure?
Are there any other policy issues that need to be addressed beyond the Government’s proposals for the capacity mechanism and the EPS?
Given a continuing role for gas and the potential for increased volatility in gas demand, to what extent is gas supply and related infrastructure a barrier to investment in gas fired generation? What impact will unconventional gas have on the case for investing in gas generation and the supporting infrastructure?

http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/n ... 2_056.aspx

[mobbsey]

They're talking bananas! Well, with ideas like that it's obvious where all the illicit drugs the police confiscate are ending up!

[clv101]

Energy policy is about three things: Affordability, Green and Security.
During the last decade, Green was the priority, Affordability and Security secondary concerns. This gave us the -80% emission target, renewables and nuclear.
Things have changed. Affordability is now the priority, Green and Security secondary. This is a gas driven policy, which is more likely to hit -40% emission reduction.

Nuclear and renewables are both expensive (upfront costs, financing) and risky (technology, carbon price, electricity price, policy change).
Gas is cheap (low capital cost, quick build) and whilst the future gas price is highly uncertain, electricity price is set by the gas price (the spark spread). So there's very litter risk for the operator.

[mobbsey]

This is a gas driven policy, which is more likely to hit -40% emission reduction.

But we don't have the gas, or the export industries to generate the income to pay to import it!

[biffvernon]

They're talking bananas! Well, with ideas like that it's obvious where all the illicit drugs the police confiscate are ending up!

So that'll be your submission to the DECC consultation then

[clv101]

This is a gas driven policy, which is more likely to hit -40% emission reduction.

But we don't have the gas, or the export industries to generate the income to pay to import it!

That'll be outside the consultation's terms of reference!

[mobbsey]

So that'll be your submission to the DECC consultation then

As with my previous ones, I can probably string it out to 20 or 30 pages in order to cite the relevant background information, along with some cute graphs to illustrate the point.

E.g. I've recently churned out a really interesting graph of DECC's energy projections to 2025 with the effects of shale gas/CBM production factored in.... doesn't make a whole lot of difference to the long downward trend!