Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the effects of increasing wind penetration in the electricity system on the capacity factor of gas-fired power stations.

Whilst unabated gas generation currently plays a key role in keeping Great Britain’s electricity system stable and secure (with around 34 GW of capacity currently installed on the system), the development of clean flexible technologies means it will be used less frequently in the future. The Government is actively developing policies to bring forward low carbon flexible technologies and to ensure that unabated gas capacity has clear decarbonisation pathways.

Achieving the UK's ambitious 2050 net zero target will require significant increases in renewable electricity generation and Great Britain’s exposure to volatile global gas prices underscores the importance of the Government’s plan to build a robust domestic renewable and resilient energy sector to further reduce our reliance on fossil fuels.