Coal power plant closure ‘postponed to ward off winter blackouts’

The National Grid has already made deals with Drax and EDF to keep open two units each from October to the end of March

The closure of a coal power station in Nottinghamshire is expected to be postponed as part of plans to ramp up domestic energy production in a bid to prevent winter blackouts, reports suggest.

The National Grid’s electricity system operator (NGESO) is in the midst of finalising a deal with German energy company Uniper – which owns the Ratcliffe-on-Soar site – to keep the station on standby should it need to run at full capacity over the winter months, according toThe Guardian,

In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the subsequent havoc wreaked on global energy supplies, business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng implored NGESO executives in May to work with Uniper, Drax and EDF to put the brakes on plans to decommission their coal power stations.