UK has 'almost no gas' stored for this winter, says top energy boss in dire warning

UK has 'almost no gas' stored for this winter, says top energy boss in dire warning The head of British Gas's owner has fuelled fears about how the UK could cope with an energy shock this winter by voicing concern at dwindling stocks as the weather begins to turn The UK has “almost no gas” stored for this winter, a top energy boss has warned. Chris O’Shea, chief executive of British Gas owner Centrica, added to fears of a looming shortfall when temperatures plunge. The UK has significantly less natural gas storage compared to other European countries, which have spent decades building capacity to cope with a peak in demand. Instead, the UK relies on a small number of gas sites - salt caverns and depleted oil and gas fields - along with imports. However, there are growing concerns about the low levels of gas in storage ahead of the winter, along with questions over whether the UK will be able to rely on shipments of gas from abroad. Mr O’Shea wrote on LinkedIn: “For too long we in the UK have relied on other countries to provide our energy security, under investing in gas fired power generation and gas storage.” He went on: “We have almost no gas in storage in the UK for the coming winter and this is a huge concern as energy security is a national security.” Figures suggested the UK’s gas facilities were around 30% full this week, down from 46% at the same time last year. They were more than 90% full in the two years before that. Concerns have been fuelled by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz after the outbreak of the Middle East war. The waterway is a vital for shipments of liquefied natural gas (LNG), as well as oil. The conflict has led to a surge in wholesale energy prices, and more competition for LNG shipments from other countries, including in Asia. The jump will see tens of millions of households hit with another winter price shock, regulator Ofgem confirmed this week. Its price cap is rising by 4% from this October - just as many households will turn on their heating as temperatures start to fall. Mr O’Shea’s comments come as Centrica urges the government to provide backing a proposed £2billion investment by the company in its existing sub-sea Rough storage facility. The facility, beneath the North Sea, is the single biggest gas storage site for the UK. However, Centrica says it is losing £10million a month maintaining it. The company wants ministers to commit to a”cap and floor” financing mechanism to guarantee a return on its investment. Mr O’Shea’s comments came after he warned last month “time is running short” to ensure the country’s largest gas storage site remains open. He said Rough would be “close to exhausted” by the winter, as the firm called on the government to step in. The former gas field could store enough gas for up to 30 days.