Energy Markets

Lord Teverson Excerpts

Monday 9th March 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Whitehead (Lab)]

The noble Lord, who has great experience in these matters, makes important points about how we have to cope with substantial additional electricity demand, particularly as we electrify the economy as a whole, and for new things such as data centre demand and so on. Certainly, calculations suggest that the UK low-carbon energy economy, and the tremendous steps forward in procuring offshore and onshore wind, floating wind and various other things, is beginning to inform the quantum of energy that is needed. There are a lot of difficulties in that process, such as connections which we need to get on with very rapidly and various other things, to make sure that we can decongest the system and that the energy that we are producing gets to where we want it to be. Overall, the low-carbon energy revolution is up to the task of producing the additional electricity that we are going to use in the system for the future.

[Lord Teverson (LD)]

My Lords, the person smiling this evening is President Putin of the Russian Federation, because an economy that was hugely under pressure is going to be relieved when it comes to oil prices. In fact, I read this evening that Putin has offered to help Europe out with its gas shortage. I hope that will not be the case. Will the Minister speak to his Ministry of Defence and Foreign Office counterparts to put much more emphasis, work and pressure on stopping the shadow fleet of the Russian Federation being able to operate, which is its supply line that enables it to continue fighting the war against Ukraine that is a threat to us all?

[Lord Whitehead (Lab)]

I agree with the noble Lord that Putin may well be smiling a little at the prospect of sky-high energy prices benefiting his beleaguered economy, and that some of the sanctions may be taken off him because people would rather like some of his oil and gas for the future. It is doubly important, therefore, that we keep those sanctions in place, that we sanction the shadow fleet, and that we make sure that the oil from Russia does not get out, by hook or by crook, into various places where it should not go. The UK Government are determined to keep that process under way. It is very important that Putin is not the unwitting beneficiary of this.