Energy boss admits to Storm Arwen ‘errors’

An energy firm boss has said he is “disappointed” customers were given inaccurate deadlines for getting their electricity and gas restored after the devastation of Storm Arwen.

Scottish Power’s CEO Guy Jefferson told MPS investigating the response that agencies coped well in the aftermath last November but could make improvements.

Thousands of homes were left without power for days after the storm, described as one of the worst to hit Scotland.

Speaking to Westminster’s Scottish Affairs Committee, industry leaders said debris on their roads and phone signal disruption hampered their response.

The brutal gale-force winds reached more than 100mph, causing damage all over eastern Scotland.

The Scottish Government confirmed previously they had launched a probe into the storm, with the results expected later this month.

Mr Jefferson said Scottish Power had given power restoration times to customers with the “best intentions” and most targets were met.

But he admitted that they “could do better” in future if another similar storm strikes the country.

Scottish Tory MP John Lamont said his parents were among those left without power in the aftermath of the devastating storm.

Mr Jefferson said: “We are disappointed that some customers received inaccurate restoration times.

“We had 88% of customers on within 24 hours. In general those customers received an accurate restoration time.

“There were multiple restoration times given to customers and I guess we were definitely guilty of being overambitious with some of those. We had the best intentions.”

Agencies responding to the powerful winds faced major delays due to debris blown on to roads.

Responders were met with obstacles such as trampolines and sheds on quiet roads, which stopped them from getting to communities in need.

Small towns and villages were left cut off, with power outages disrupting phone lines.

SSEN boss Mark Rough said: “We had over 700 high voltage faults and trips on the network.

“Getting to the damage, we took stock on the

Saturday and suffered some real challenges around access due to falling trees, but also due to flying debris including sheds and trampolines.”

Mr Jefferson said that rural B roads need further investment to help prevent future power outages.

It was also claimed energy firms and local authorities had a lack of time to prepare since the extent of the bad weather had been unexpected.

A Met Office red warning was issued hours before the worst of the storm started to devastate the north-east on November 25.

Storm Arwen was labelled one of the worst storms recorded in Scotland.

But MPS expressed concerns that unpredictable gales could become more common as the impact of climate change worsens.

UK Business and Energy Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng admitted Britain will have to build a more “resilient system” in years to come.

The Tory minister believes the country should be prepared for “more extreme weather” but believes that Conservative environmental plans could help stem the worst of the problem.

He told Scottish MPS: “It would take someone foolhardy to say exactly how that will affect infrastructure over the next 10 years.

“Clearly we have to build a more resilient system.

“We should be prepared for more extreme weather, and that’s why we’re bringing in more legislation. We’re trying to deal with eventualities as they may arise. It’s challenging.”

DAMAGE: Thousands of homes were left without power for days after the storm, described as one of the worst to have hit Scotland.