British billpayers have spent an “absurd” £1bn [$1.26bn] to temporarily switch off wind turbines so far this year as the grid struggles to cope with their power. [emphasis, links added]
The amount of wind power “curtailed” in the first 11 months of 2024 stood at about 6.6 gigawatt hours (GWh), according to official figures, up from 3.8 GWh in the whole of last year.
Curtailment is where wind turbines are paid to switch off at times of high winds to stop a surge in power overwhelming the grid. Households and businesses pay for the cost of this policy through their bills.
The cost of switching off has reached about £1bn [$1.26bn] so far this year, according to analysis of market data by Octopus Energy, which was first reported by Bloomberg.
This is more than the £779m [$984m] spent last year and £945m [$1,193m] spent in 2022.
The jump in curtailment follows the opening of more wind farms at a time when the country still lacks the infrastructure needed to transport all the electricity they generate at busy times.
Clem Cowton, the director of external affairs at Octopus, added:
“The outdated rules of our energy system mean vast amounts of cheap green power go to waste.
“It’s absurd that Britain pays Scottish wind farms to turn off when it’s windy, while simultaneously paying gas-power stations in the South to turn on.
“We need to change the rules that govern our system to make the most of our homegrown energy and get bills down for British households and businesses.”
Octopus and others have called for the country to shift to a regional pricing system, which they say would incentivize more wind farms to be built closer to where power is needed.
This would reduce the need for hundreds of miles of cables to deliver electricity from the North and Scotland, where many wind farms are, to the South where demand is greatest.
However, the plans would be controversial as it would likely mean homes and businesses in the South paid more for their energy than those in the North.
Jason Mann, an electricity markets expert at FTI Consulting, said the high curtailment costs underlined the lack of cables to transport power to the South.
However, he also argued the £1bn cost was partly the result of Britain’s national electricity pricing system.
Mr Mann said:
“Congestion costs are an inevitable problem under the current market design we have in Britain.
“Increasing the amount of transmission capacity we have can alleviate the problem but not fully – it will remain an enduring issue.
“At some point, you have to do something that encourages greater demand in the North, for example, lower prices.”
According to the National Energy System Operator (Neso), curtailment costs are on course to surge to £6bn [$7.58bn] by 2030 if the status quo continues.
Read rest at Telegraph
