Energy and Climate Change written question – answered at on 23 June 2011.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the likely cost per MWh of electricity generation from generating plants on standby to cover for the intermittency of generation from wind power.
Additional electricity generation required as a result of low wind output or any other reason could be provided by a number of technologies. Our estimates are that the likely short run marginal cost(1) per MWh of standby generation ranges from £60 to £80 for gas and coal generation without CCS. Non-generation approaches can also be used to balance supply and demand, such as demand response, interconnection and storage. As we decarbonise the electricity system further, these non-generation approaches are expected to play proportionately more of a role as they can often facilitate integration of intermittent generation more effectively than back-up generation.
(1)The short run marginal cost is the cost of an existing plant generating electricity (therefore includes variable operating costs, fuel costs, carbon costs but not construction costs or fixed operating costs).
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