British Gas owner extends storage to ‘keep energy prices down’

Centrica has extended its gas storage capacity at a site located of the coast of East Yorkshire, as the British Gas owner prepares for winter this year.

The Rough site, which is located 18 miles off the coast of the county and currently provides half of all UK gas storage, was shuttered in 2017 before being re-opened in October last year.

The group plans to invest £2billion to turn Rough into the world’s biggest methane and hydrogen storage facility, which it says will ‘help keep prices down for consumers’ and could help Britain become ‘a net exporter of energy once again’.

Centrica has faced criticism for heavily profiting from high energy prices at a time when many Britons are struggling with bills.

Sites like Rough store natural gas when there is a surplus, and then provide it at times when the country needs it during cold snaps and peak demand.

Rough’s capacity has now grown from 30 billion cubic feet (bcf) of gas to 54bcf as part of the plans, equivalent to the volume of gas needed to heat 2.4 million homes over the winter, according to Centrica.

Britain currently has some of the lowest levels of gas storage in Europe at 12 days average or 7.5 peak winter days, compared to Germany at 89 days, France at 103 days and the Netherlands at 123 days.

The additional capacity means Rough can store up to 6 days of average UK gas use, Centrica said.

Centrica boss Chris O’Shea said the £2billion investment will bolster Britain’s energy security, deliver a ‘net zero electricity system by 2035’, create 5,000 skilled jobs, and decarbonise the country’s industrial clusters by 2040.

He added: ‘This world class North Sea asset has the potential to help the UK economy return to a position of being a net exporter of energy once again.

‘The resilience of the UK’s energy system needs to be substantially improved. We are delighted to play our part by further expanding the UK’s gas storage capacity.

‘Rough is not a silver bullet for energy security, but it plays a critical role in increasing capacity and supply confidence over the winter months.

‘Rough can help our energy system by storing natural gas when there is a surplus and producing this gas when the country needs it during cold snaps and peak demand.’