Record price paid to keep the lights on

BRITAIN was forced to pay the highest price on record for electricity last week to keep the lights on in the capital.

The National Grid Electricity System Operator (ESO) paid £9,724.54 per megawatt hour to Belgium – more than 5,000 per cent higher than the typical price – on Wednesday to prevent a blackout in south-east London.

It came amid extreme constraints in the power system and increased demand related to the hottest days on record in Britain.

London Fire Brigade had its busiest day since the Second World War last Tuesday as temperatures soared above 40C, with hundreds of fires across the city.

Increased demand for energy across Europe and a bottleneck in the grid forced the ESO to buy electricity from Belgium at the record price. Planned maintenance and a storm in Belgium also put the system under strain.

National Grid ESO said: ‘We were bidding in a tight market and market prices were high because Europe also wanted the energy.’