Britain could face rolling three-hour blackouts this winter if imports stall

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Asked if she could guarantee there would be no blackouts, she said: “What we’re clear about is that we do have a good supply of energy in the UK, we’re in a much better position than many other countries, but of course there’s always more we can do and that’s why I’m here working with our partners making sure we do have a secure energy supply into the future”. National Grid said outages were “unlikely” but possible even without a drop-off in gas supplies, if cold weather coincided with no electricity imports from Europe and low wind energy generation. Every spin of a wind turbine and loft lagged means less gas we need to try to buy.” National Grid’s fresh analysis of energy security comes after energy regulator Ofgem warned on Monday that there was a “significant risk” of gas shortages this winter. “To strengthen this position further, we have put plans in place to secure supply and National Grid, working alongside energy suppliers and Ofgem, will launch a voluntary service to reward users who reduce demand at peak times.” The spokesperson said Britain is not dependent on Russian energy imports, and has access to North Sea gas reserves, imports from Norway, and via ports which can handle liquefied natural gas, as well as clean energy sources.