UK Electricity Supply Industry Research Articles

0090 Magnetic field exposures and brain tumour and leukaemia risks in UK electricity generation and transmission workers, 1973–2010

ObjectivesTo investigate whether brain tumour or leukaemia risks are related to occupational exposure to low-frequency magnetic fields.MethodBrain tumour and leukaemia risks experienced by 73 051 UK electricity supply industry workers...

Pricing behaviour under competition in the UK electricity supply industry

This paper investigates the evolution of electricity prices for domestic customers in the UK following the introduction of competition. The empirical analysis is based on a panel data set containing detailed information about electricity supply prices over the period 1999 to 2006. The analysis examines the pricing patterns and draws inferences concerning the benefits of incumbency and the gains from search. The econometric analysis of persistence and price dispersion provides rather limited support for the view that the market is becoming more competitive and also indicates that there remain significant potential benefits to consumers from searching alternative suppliers.

Energy-efficient new housing – the UK reaches for sustainability

A critique is presented of recent proposals by the UK government to require new housing to become progressively more energy efficient, leading to net zero-carbon dioxide emissions from 2016. It is implied that these zero-carbon homes will involve a range of on-site power generation, and the technological changes needed to achieve this are discussed. Achieving zero-carbon space and water heating presents a distinct set of infrastructural challenges to the industry. However, proven and demonstrated technologies exist that, if deployed correctly, could achieve this goal. In contrast, the provision of zero net carbon electrical power to homes presents technological demands. It will require substantial advancement of current technological concepts, coupled to infrastructural change in the UK electricity supply industry, to be successful. Careful consideration should be given to the scale of the electricity-generating technologies proposed to ensure that the lowest cost and risk pathways are identified. It is not clear in the legislation proposed that these pathways will be sought. Cet article analyse des propositions récemment faites par le gouvernement du Royaume-Uni visant à ce que les nouveaux bâtiments deviennent progressivement plus efficaces sur le plan de l'énergie et qu'à partir de 2016 ils n'émettent plus de CO2. Cela signifie que ces maisons sans émission de CO2 nécessiteront une palette de systèmes de génération d'énergie sur site; l'article examine également les changements technologiques nécessaires pour atteindre cet objectif. Réaliser des systèmes de chauffage des locaux et des chauffe-eau sans émission de CO2 présente pour l'industrie des défis qu'elle devra relever en ce qui concerne les infrastructures. Toutefois, il existe des technologies qui ont fait leurs preuves et qui ont été démontrées; si elles sont mises en œuvre correctement, elles pourraient permettre d'atteindre cet objectif. Au contraire, la fourniture d'énergie électrique nette zéro de carbone présente des difficultés technologiques. Il faudra que les concepts technologiques actuels progressent de manière importante et qu'ils soient couplés à des modifications des infrastructures industrielles de production d'électricité du Royaume-Uni. Il faudra bien prendre en considération la portée des technologies de production d'électricité proposées pour s'assurer que les filières présentant les coûts et les risques les moins élevés soient identifiées. Il n'apparaît pas clairement dans la législation proposée que ces filières seront étudiées. Mots clés: émissions de CO2, maisons, énergie renouvelable, maisons sans émission de CO2

Impact of micro-combined heat-and-power systems on energy flows in the UK electricity supply industry

The effects of applying micro-CHP systems to a single dwelling, and to various dwellings within a group, are investigated by using gas and electricity consumption data recorded on a 1-min time base across a full year. Micro-CHP systems based on Stirling engines and fuel cells are predicted to supply 25–46% of the single dwelling's annual electricity demand. For all days of the year, the daily load factor of the resultant load placed on the electricity network is reduced, suggesting that the overall effect of micro-CHP systems will be to provide highly dispersed base-load generation. Consideration of various penetration levels of a 1 kW Stirling engine micro-CHP system of 15% electrical efficiency indicates that the maximum reduction in the aggregate peak load for a single distribution transformer will be about 44% on a winter's day, but only 3% on a summer's day. An alternative implementation of 3 kW fuel cell systems of 50% electrical efficiency would yield significant reductions (both in the peak load and the daily requirement for network electricity) at low penetration levels, with significant reverse flows occurring at the distribution transformer once the penetration level exceeds approximately 15% on a winter's day.

Regulatory performance analysis case study: Britain's electricity industry

The success or failure of the privatisation and liberalisation of electricity supply industries has more often been judged in terms of process than of outcomes. In this paper, in contrast, this performance is assessed in terms of the performance of its associated system of regulatory governance. Taking the UK's electricity supply industry between 1989 and 2000 as case study, initially, a vertical cross-section of the regulation system gives a finding matrix for the various stakeholders involved and identifying winners and losers from the standpoint of funding flows. Next, a horizontal cross-section provides the environmental, distributive, allocative, dynamic and productive efficiencies grid for this system. The survey shows that the performance of the British ESI regulation system produced benefits, although not for all stakeholders and not as fairly as possible. The chosen path did not seem sustainable and failed to respect intergenerational transfers as a way of fostering sustainability and equity. It was unable to underpin simultaneous improvements in efficiencies over time, while redistributing industry's funding flows among the players in a regressive manner.

Living with NETA [New Electricity Trading Arrangements

The UK's New Electricity Trading Arrangements are now in their second year of operation. In this paper, the author reports on progress to date in this area of the UK electricity supply industry.

The Electricity Supply Industry: A Study of an Industry in Transition

In 1989 the UK began a process of transferring an almost wholly state-owned electricity supply industry (ESI) into a collection of privately-owned generation, transmission and distribution utilities. Using data from 1960–97, this paper aims to evaluate how the performance of the UK ESI has changed over time and to compare the UK performance with France, Germany and the United States in order to assess the impact of the liberalisation process. The study takes a whole-industry approach, combining the four aspects of electricity production — generation, transmission, distribution and supply. The computation of labour and total factor productivity and the impact on consumer prices are used to shed light on how successful the various industry structures have been in raising performance.

A vision of true costing

In recent years, most new generating plant installed in the UK electricity supply industry has been gas turbine. In the near future, this trend could change as both environmental pressures and international agreements legislate towards a significant increase in the level of exploitation of renewable energy. Options for new generating plant must be assessed and compared using several bases before a choice is made. This paper describes the initial stages of development of techniques to accommodate externalities into the decision-making process. An illustrative example, wind energy, is presented.

Coal-fired generation in a privatised electricity supply industry

Since privatisation of the UK Electricity Supply Industry, the merit-order for the dispatch of generating plant has undergone radical changes. In Scotland, where the electricity companies have a broad-based generation portfolio, base load is now usually carried by a combination of nuclear and gas-fired generation. Hydroelectricity has now moved to a much less well-defined position for generation, partly because of its seasonal variability. However, the major consequence of this arrangement has been that coal-fired generation has slipped in the merit-order from the days of Nationalisation and now occupies a mid-merit position. This changed role for coal has imposed new requirements on engineers involved in the operation of, and generation planning for, coal-fired power stations.

The US Takeover of the UK Electricity Supply Industry

To what extent will the current wave of mergers, aimed at market concentration, really achieve long-term benefits? The evidence, at least in one market sector, implies that we may never know.

A structured approach to Asset Management within the electricity industry

Pressures are increasing upon utilities world-wide to provide a high quality of service at minimum cost, which requires a well founded Asset Management Policy to ensure network assets remain in a satisfactory condition. This issue is particularly acute in the UK Electricity Supply Industry where assets have attained high levels of reliability and failure data are limited, making Asset Management decisions difficult. By drawing upon examples observed in other industries a structured approach to Asset Management is developed. The approach contains six stages which are explained in detail together with a discussion of practical implementation. It is intended that the framework is sufficiently general that it can be applied to any industrial context, although the particular application to Oil-filled Circuit Breakers is detailed.

Developments in the UK electricity supply industry

Developments in the UK electricity supply industry

97/03866 The pool and forward contracts in the UK electricity supply industry

97/03866 The pool and forward contracts in the UK electricity supply industry

Developments in industrial cogeneration

Since the privatisation of the UK electricity supply industry in 1990, there has been significant growth in the market for smaller generating plants and in particular industrial cogeneration schemes. This article reviews these developments and comments on their impact on Regional Electricity Companies' distribution systems. A case study of a cogeneration scheme is also provided.

A tale of two cities: hydroelectricity at Chester and York

Two unique low-fall hydroelectric power plants which operated until after the nationalisation of the UK electricity supply industry were built to supply the cities of Chester and York. At Chester, the erection of a hydroelectric power plant at a weir on the River Dee in 1913 provided an attractive alternative to extending the existing thermal station. This scheme was the only one in England dealing with both tidal and head waters. The success of the Chester scheme had considerable influence on the decision to construct a similar plant at York when, in 1918, coal stocks became a cause of anxiety. A hydroelectric power station based on the Chester plan was built in 1923 at Linton Lock on the River Ouse and continued in operation until 1962. It was also considered expedient during the post World War I coal shortage to install two 1200 hp diesel engines and dynamos removed from a German submarine to complement the public electricity supply at York.

A City view of the UK electricity supply industry

Since the UK electricity industry was restructured in 1990, and subsequently privatised, there have been several major changes within the industry. These can broadly be categorised as an increased emphasis on cost reduction, a change in capital investment patterns (most notably in generation), the impact on customers in terms of both price and service, and the introduction of both competition and explicit regulation. More recently there have been significant changes in the ownership structure of the industry. This article addresses each of these topics and the Stock Market or City reaction to them.

The privatisation of the UK electricity industry: a case of unfinished business

The privatisation of the UK electricity supply industry (ESI) has been, by any test, a process of great importance, both economically and politically. Although the process is not yet complete, the Energy Programme at the Science Policy Research Unit at Sussex University considered that the experience of some six years from the initial privatisation allowed considerable scope for a nonpartisan analysis of the record so far and of the issues outstanding. The lessons learnt so far, managing competition, ESI and primary energy, and the relevance of UK experience to other countries.

The pool and forward contracts in the UK electricity supply industry

Helm and Powell (1992) [ Fiscal Stud. 13 (1) 89–105] proposed that the break-up of the first set of contracts for differences (ie financial forward contracts) for electricity which were instituted at privatization between the generators and the regional suppliers led to a structural break in the underlying relationship between the demand for and the price of electricity. They found that this break-up led to a marked increase in prices due to the interdependency between the electricity pool (spot market) and the contract market (forward market). This study replicates and augments the work of Helm and Powell by expanding their data set in order to examine the break-up of the second set of contracts for differences in March 1993 and its effects on electricity prices [this was also expanded by Gray et al (1996) ( The UK Energy Experience: A Model or a Warning? Imperial College Press, London]. By utilizing the methodology of Helm and Powell (1992), it is found that the dissolution of this second set of contracts had a similar effect on the relationship between prices and demand. This supports the view that the contract market should be made more open and subjected to more rigorous examination due to its effects on pool prices.

Renewable energy policy in the UK: Problems and opportunities

The privatisation of the UK Electricity Supply industry in 1989/90 was expected to provide an opportunity for novel energy technologies to develop. This paper reviews the experience of renewable energy technologies, following the introduction, as part of the privatisation programme, of a cross subsidy system paid for by consumers designed to provide interim market support and stimulation for selected non-fossil fuel based technologies - as part of the so-called Non Fossil Fuel Obligation. While the NFFO levy certainly stimulated some renewable energy developments which might not otherwise have been successful, it is argued that the Governments decision in 1994 to cut back on R&D on renewable energy technology will mean that there will be fewer candidate technologies for selection for subsequent rounds of the NFFO. Market pull has clearly been effective at helping some renewable energy technologies to become established commercially, but, it is argued, there is also a need for continued technology push to support the next wave of technologies.

Tariffs and load management: a post privatisation study of the UK electricity supply industry

An electric utility can influence its customers' load by providing financial incentives through the prices charged for electricity at different times of use. By designing discriminatory time-of-use tariffs in which the price of electricity corresponds to the marginal cost of supply, a utility provides appropriate signals to the customer to increase consumption of electricity at off-peak periods. The utilization of off-peak electricity results in the improvement of power system load factor which is an indicator for the utilities to decide to defer investment in new generating and transmission capacity. The need to utilize off-peak electricity provides ample justification for the investigation of the determinants of the off-peak demand functions, customers response to discriminatory prices and their implication to system load management. Using the econometric approach, this paper reports a study of the British experience in the field of tariffs and load management in the case of the privatised electricity supply industry. The results of this study may be applicable to the Regional Electricity Companies in the UK. The utilities in several developing countries may find this study relevant, if they decide to restructure their industry for increasing efficiency and tariff for implementing load management instead of arbitrary load shedding.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">&gt;</ETX>