The Security of the United Kingdom Electricity Imports under Conditions of High European Demand

TL;DR

This paper examines the UK’s electricity import security amid high European demand, revealing that economic and national security interests dominate, while environmental sustainability is often overlooked, and import reliance is unreliable during shortages.

Contribution

It provides an analysis of the UK’s electricity import vulnerabilities under high demand conditions within the European integrated market context.

Findings

UK cannot rely on imports during high demand periods

Environmental sustainability is deprioritized in energy security decisions

European market integration does not fully ensure supply security for the UK

Abstract

Energy policy in Europe has been driven by the three goals of security of supply, economic competitiveness and environmental sustainability, referred to as the energy trilemma. Although there are clear conflicts within the trilemma, member countries have acted to facilitate a fully integrated European electricity market. Interconnection and cross-border electricity trade has been a fundamental part of such market liberalisation. However, it has been suggested that consumers are exposed to a higher price volatility as a consequence of interconnection. Furthermore, during times of energy shortages and high demand, issues of national sovereignty take precedence over cooperation. In this article, the unique and somewhat peculiar conditions of early 2017 within France, Germany and the United Kingdom have been studied to understand how the existing integration arrangements address the energy trilemma. It is concluded that the dominant interests are economic and national security; issues of environmental sustainability are neglected or overridden. Although the optimisation of European electricity generation to achieve a lower overall carbon emission is possible, such a goal is far from being realised. Furthermore, it is apparent that the United Kingdom, and other countries, cannot rely upon imports from other countries during periods of high demand and/or limited supply.