Why all the batteries when no electricity?

BUILDING a “huge Britishvolt battery plant in South Wales for electric vehicles” is rather like putting the proverbial cart before the horse.

As I pointed out in my recent letter, the electricity does not exist in the National Grid to power any electric cars in the UK, on a cold winter’s day especially. So what use are millions of batteries?

The National Grid has little more than 65,000MW. In cold weather, we will need 60,000MW for homes, offices, factories and hospitals.

If the government closes fossil fuel power stations, as proposed, most of this electricity will not exist.

As I write, at noon, on August 15, the National Grid website , gridwatch.templar.co.uk tells us that the “great white hope”, wind energy, is generating a paltry 1,430 megawatts!

Since 30 million Nissan Leaf cars with 40kWhr batteries need a continuous 5kW charge for eight hours, entailing a total extra – nonexistent – 150,000MW from the National Grid, what use are millions of batteries?

We’re also told that the Britishvolt factory at St Athan will have a massive – but trifling – “200 megawatt solar plant”. 200 MW is tiny compared to UK needs, but it is also the installed capacity, not the actual productivity.

The solar array will produce nothing in the dark and very, very little in morning and evening, especially on cloudy or wet days. Plus, it is dark for about 17 hours a day at St Athan in midwinter. What then?

I see that the Aston Martin factory is next door.

Will the Astons be electric cars driven by these batteries?

Imagine if James Bond had to charge his Aston Martin for eight hours before giving chase?

He’d never even catch Del Boy in his three-wheel Robin Reliant. Luvly jubbly!

Lyn Jenkins Gwbert, Cardigan