30 SECOND GUIDE TO ... ICIS

What is that?

FORMERLY called ICIS heren, it is an energy price reporting agency.

This means it is responsible for monitoring the price of gas and electricity traded on the open markets in the UK. It also monitors and carries out analysis of the international gas and power markets, and has a large team of data analysts all over the world.

So what?

This means it is regarded across the industry as one of the voices of authority on energy matters, and particularly on the markets. Today it publishes its annual assessment of Britain’s power system going into winter.

What does it say?

Things are tight. Older power plants have been shut down, but not enough new ones are being built. This has left the margin between generating capacity and demand at razor-thin levels – 1.2pc according to National Grid.

This level ‘is not comfortable… and does not even account for unplanned outages, which can often affect power plants’. But despite the squeeze, ‘this does not mean blackouts are on the cards’.

Anything else?

The largest threat facing the UK this winter comes from Ukraine, where an escalation of hostilities with Russia could lead to a large part of europe’s gas supply being cut off. Because the UK is connected to europe through large pipes, this will affect British prices. But the chance of it happening is low, it admits.