There were five contingency units to call on last winter as the energy market reeled from the impact of Russia’s war in Ukr\aine.
They were warmed up several times and used during March when a cold \snap hurt wind generation.
The ESO had said earlier this month, at the publication of its early winter outlook report, that it remained in talks with EDF and Drax about keeping their coal-fired generation on its standby contracts.
But it said on Wednesday: “At the request of government in March 2023, the ESO has undertaken discussions with the operators of two winter 2022/23 contingency coal plants to establish whether these arrangements could be extended for a further winter.
“These discussions have now concluded. Both operators have confirmed that they will not be able to make their coal units available for a further winter and have begun the decommissioning process.”
That process was down to government policy...<<<Read More>>>...
