Britain has ‘almost no gas in storage’ ahead of winter, energy boss fears

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Norwegian Energy Minister Terje Aasland said it will continue to develop resources in the Barents Sea,

Britain has "almost no gas in storage" ahead of the coming winter, the boss of energy giant Centrica has warned.

Chris O'Shea said the lack of storage was "a huge concern" and that "time is rapidly running out" to fix it.

Centrica operates the Rough gas storage facility in the North Sea.

However, it has said that the site will close next year without Government intervention.

Centrica, which owns British Gas, has plans for a £2billion redevelopment of the “important strategic asset” that accounts for half of the UK’s gas storage capacity.

But it wants guarantees on gas prices from the Government to ensure the expansion is economically viable.

Mr O'Shea warned on LinkedIn: "We stand ready to invest £2bn of our shareholders’ money to redevelop the Rough gas storage facility with the right regulatory support framework, but time is rapidly running out.

"We have almost no gas in storage in the UK for the coming winter and this is a huge concern as energy security is national security."

Mr O'Shea was responding to a report from Reuters that Norway no longer sees itself as Europe's "green battery".

Energy Minister Terje Aasland said it will continue to develop resources in the Barents Sea, despite the European Union backing a ban on drilling in the Arctic.

However, forecasts suggest production will slow after 2030 unless new resources are discovered.

Mr Aasland said: "If Norway is to remain a long-term supplier of oil and gas to Europe, then the Arctic must be part of that discussion.”

Norway also produces a surplus of renewable energy most years, thanks to an extensive network of reservoirs and waterways feeding hydroelectrical plants.

Some of this power was exported to Europe via cross-border power cables. But Norway's domestic prices are shooting up with increased demand from factories and data centres.

Mr Aasland said Norway alone can't balance the European power market.

He urged European nations to strengthen their stable power supply, weakened by coal and nuclear plant closures and a lack of investment in new gas-fired generation.

Mr O'Shea said of the report: “This is totally understandable. For too long, we in the UK have relied on other countries to provide our energy security, under-investing in gas-fired power generation and gas storage.

A spokesman for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said: “We have a diverse energy mix and are confident in our security of supply.

“This includes gas from our own North Sea production, pipelines with Norway, interconnectors with Europe and three LNG terminals.

“The future of Rough storage is a commercial decision for Centrica, but we remain open to discussing proposals on all gas storage sites, as long as it provides value for money for taxpayers.”