UK gas reserves hit lowest level in decades as emergency plans show who would be cut off first
UK gas reserves are at their lowest in decades, and an emergency planning exercise shows power stations and exports would be cut off before homes if supply runs short.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
UK gas reserves have fallen to their lowest level in decades. Winter is coming, when demand for heating and electricity is highest. The country is increasingly dependent on imports, and the conflict in the Middle East has added pressure to supply.
An emergency planning exercise has set out how Britain would cope if gas supply ran out. The exercise, previously unseen, tests the invisible system that moves gas around the country. That system keeps homes warm and power stations running. It also decides what happens when the network fails.
In the scenario, a cold, still, misty day means there is no wind generation and very little solar power. Demand for gas-fired power stations is very high. A control room manager reports that all gas coming in from Easington, where Norwegian gas arrives, has been lost. Smoke is seen over Easington. Teams then work to manage the situation and avoid an emergency.
The planning team progressively breaks things to test the response. It may simulate damage to its own assets, but more often it cuts off supply sources. One scenario involves a severe storm in the northern North Sea that stops Norwegian gas because the infrastructure is iced up.
The aim is to maximise gas coming in before cutting off users. The largest loads go first because they are quickest to cut and quickest to restore. If the UK were exporting to mainland Europe, those exports would be cut first, but not supplies to the island of Ireland. If that does not balance the system, the next large loads to go would be power stations. That means power cuts could come quite early, even before industrial customers are cut off.
A team of four officials at National Gas controls the network. In an emergency, they have wide power and authority to decide who is cut off.
Storage levels are also low. Across Europe, gas storage is at its lowest level for this part of the season on record. The UK picture is similar, with storage lower than at any time in about the last decade and a half. The UK has less long-term storage than many European countries and relies on liquefied natural gas tankers arriving when needed. The physical network was built for an era when more gas came from the North Sea, but domestic supply is no longer enough. Even homes without gas still depend on electricity, and gas remains a large part of the UK electricity mix when wind and solar are low.
The report says the aim is not to scaremonger. Contingency planning is a normal and prudent part of running the system. But the UK is more exposed to global gas markets, especially if LNG tankers fail to arrive or if Norwegian supplies are disrupted.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |
|---|---|
| Only on one channel | |
| An emergency planning exercise details who would be cut off first, with four National Gas officials empowered to decide. | |
| In a gas shortage, power cuts would come early and power stations would be among the first users cut off, even before industrial customers. | |
| In an emergency, gas exports to mainland Europe would reportedly be cut first, while supplies to the island of Ireland would not be cut. | |
| The UK is reported to be increasingly dependent on gas imports as Middle East conflict restricts supply. | |
| UK gas reserves are reported to have reached their lowest level in decades. | |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
Sky News led its morning bulletin with the gas story as its top item. It framed the issue around low reserves, import dependence, Middle East pressure and winter demand, then previewed the emergency exercise. Its focus was the order in which users would be cut off.
- “The UK's gas reserves are at its lowest level in decades.”
- “Our economics and data editor Ed Conway's gone inside a previously unseen emergency planning exercise to reveal who would get cut off first and how those decisions are made.”
- “So, for example, if we were exporting to mainland Europe in this situation, they would be off first. Not the island of Ireland, but mainland Europe.”
This programme expanded the story into a detailed interview with the economics and data editor. It used storage charts to show record low European gas storage and a similar UK picture. It stressed that contingency planning is prudent but that the UK is more exposed because of its reliance on LNG imports and low long-term storage.
- “As the winter frost approaches and energy reserves hit their lowest in decades, today on Sky News, we're asking, what if Britain was to run out of gas?”
- “First of all, there would be power cuts quite early. If you have a shortage of gas, power stations are one of the first things to go, even before industrial customers.”
- “it's this team of four officials working at National Gas, this group that's in control of the network. In the event of an emergency, they have an extraordinary amount of power and authority to decide who is going to get cut off.”
This later daytime block repeated the special report with the same framing. It asked what would happen if Britain ran out of gas and focused on the cut-off hierarchy. It added no new gas facts beyond the shared report before moving to unrelated news.
- “As the winter frost approaches and energy reserves hit their lowest in decades, today on Sky News we're asking what happens if Britain runs out of gas.”
- “we've gone inside a previously unseen planning exercise to reveal who would get cut off first and how the emergency decisions would be made.”
- “Ideally, you start with the largest loads first, because they're the quickest. And also, you can restore them the quickest.”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.