The Wire · Energy & Grid

Grid balancing costs hit £50m a day as reserves tighten

By Anthony at GridteamAI

The cost of balancing Britain's electricity grid reached about £47.9 million in a single day last week, with one half-hour period costing £1.6 million, among the highest figures since early 2022. National Energy System Operator paid around 9 gigawatts of wind and hydropower to switch off while gas and biomass plants ran instead, and it asked France for emergency help on two days that week. Balancing costs reached a record £505 million in September 2026 and are forecast to reach £3.2 billion over the next year, a cost that reaches household bills.