Homegrown gas is vital for energy security | Letters
Domestic gas production must be incentivised if the UK is to avoid damaging shortages, writes Prof John Underhill
Nils Pratley is right to bring attention to the warning from the National Energy System Operator (Neso) about secure gas supplies (Report detailing risk to UK gas security was not one to bury on budget day, 2 December). Without secure supplies and adequate subsurface storage, the UK has come close to running out of gas, most notably in March 2013, when we were within hours of doing so.
Given that 85% of the roughly 30m homes in the UK currently rely on gas for heating and cooking, pivoting away from the energy source is not going to happen soon. Furthermore, gas provides more than half of our electricity base load on cold, windless and dark days, meaning it’s critical that we have supplies for national security.
