Alan Brown – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Brown on 2015-10-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she has made of the potential effect on the capacity of overall UK electricity output to meet peak demand of the proposed Hinkley Point C power station not coming into operation in 2023.
Andrea Leadsom
Our number one priority is to ensure that hardworking families and businesses have access to secure, affordable energy supplies that they can rely on. We’re addressing a legacy of underinvestment to make sure we keep powering the economy now and into the future
The Capacity Market is our principal tool for ensuring we have enough capacity to meet peak demand in future. Resources which receive forms of low-carbon support such as Contracts for Difference (CFDs) do not participate in the Capacity Market auctions, but each auction is based on an updated estimate of capacity requirements four years ahead, taking account of the latest evidence on the future availability of those other resources.
The Capacity Market provides the mechanism for attracting sufficient investment in the overall level of reliable capacity (both supply and demand side) needed to provide secure electricity supplies. It brings forward new investment and gets the best out of existing assets by competitively setting a price for capacity through annual auctions.
