LIGHTS OUT Millions of households could face THREE hour rolling blackouts with little notice under new grid rules
MILLIONS of households could reportedly be hit with power cuts at short notice under new grid rules.
The National Energy System Operator (Neso) will now be able to call for rotating blackouts much more easily and quickly if power supplies are running low, according to The Guardian.
The system operator had raised the alarm twice over electricity supplies in the last week of June because of the heatwave.
The new rules were rolled out quietly by Neso and come into effect this week.
Under the changes, the system operator could call for homes and businesses within a certain area to be disconnected with just eight hours’ notice.
The blackouts would last for up to three hours and rotate across the country to limit the impact on homes and businesses.
‘Protected sites’ including hospitals, water treatment works and sites of national security interests would be exempt from any planned power cuts.
The measure would help cut each block’s electricity use by more than a fifth.
It’s hoped tit will help prevent a total power system collapse if Britain’s supplies are too low.
A spokesperson for Neso told The Guardian it was a “last-resort contingency measure” that would be used only in “the most extreme and unlikely circumstances”.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/money/40027830/households-blackouts-little-notice-grid-electricity/