RE: Poots NI Assemble today - Islandmagee14 Oct 2021 11:35
News
Energy crisis: UK could run out of gas during especially cold winter ahead, industry boss warns
Sir Jim Ratcliffe, owner of chemicals firm Ineos, said a prolonged winter ahead could mean demand for gas outweighs supply, leading to widespread shutdowns
October 14, 2021, 8.30am
. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe
Industry figures have warned that soaring natural gas prices could push further UK energy firms into administration
By Poppy Wood
October 14, 2021 8:30 am(Updated 9:02 am)
The UK holds enough gas reserves to meet the demand of four to five winter days, or just one per cent of Europe’s total available storage.
British billionaire industrialist Sir Jim Ratcliffe, owner of chemicals firm Ineos, has labeled Britain’s gas storage as “pathetic”, adding that some countries on the continent have for or five times’ the amount.
The Netherlands has capacity more than nine times the UK’s, while Germany’s is 16 times the size.
Mr Ratcliffe said the poor gas storage capacity in the UK has made the country more vulnerable to soaring prices, and that a prolonged winter ahead could mean demand for gas outweighs supply.
The industry chief told ITV’s Peston on Wednesday: “I think it’s quite difficult to predict how long this sort of current situation is going to last, but I suppose if you were a betting man you’d assume it would probably run through at least through the winter because obviously our gas demand increases in the winter.”