How we are increasingly – and so expensively – dependent on gas

MINISTERS are desperate to reduce Britain’s dependence on gas as soaring wholesale prices have sent domestic and business energy bills rocketing, writes

An analysis of the UK’s energy supply shows how gas is responsible for around 40 per cent of the overall mix.

Wind power provided almost a fifth of our electricity last month but its contribution fluctuates throughout the year. It hit a peak of 26 per cent in February.

Our electricity comes from several other sources: nuclear, hydro, biomass, imports and the sun. But amounts vary considerably depending on the season, weather and time of day.

Solar power peaks in June, providing an average 7 per cent of our needs, but was just 0.6 per cent last December. Last week, the sun supplied 3.5 per cent of the UK’s energy.

As gas prices soared last month, old coal plants had to be fired up to help meet electricity needs. Coal, which Ministers want to phase out, contributed two per cent of our electricity mix in September, up from 0.5 per cent a year previously.

Imports increased from seven per cent to ten per cent over the same period, and hydroelectric power doubled to one per cent.

Britain’s over-reliance on gas is because 85 per cent of homes need it for heating. More than half of our gas is imported – it comes from Russia, Norway, the Netherlands and Belgium through pipelines.