Committee on Climate Change

Carbon budgets will have an impact on two aspects of security of supply:

Technical security of supply relates to the degree of certainty that energy supply will be available immediately when consumers want it.  Analysis for the Committee’s December 2008, October 2009 and December 2010 reports suggests that technical security of supply can be maintained even with high penetrations of intermittent renewable electricity such as wind, alongside significant investment in relatively inflexible plant such as nuclear. Measures to ensure technical security of supply include investment in smart grids, peaking plant and interconnection with other European countries.  These measures are feasible and affordable, and their costs are included in our estimates of the costs of decarbonisation.

Geopolitical security of supply relates to the price volatility of fossil fuels, as well as the risk of supply interruptions to  imported sources. Concerns about this type of security of supply create a significant additional rationale for improved energy efficiency, and the development of electricity generation capacity which are not dependent on volatile fossil fuels, such as renewables and nuclear.

On balance therefore, overall the net impact of carbon budgets on security of supply can be positive. Read about the analysis underlying these conclusions in more detail in the Committee’s 2008, 2009 and 2010 reports.