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The electricity distribution and transmission companies have been praised by the Committee on Climate Change for “transparently taking steps” to improve flood protection levels for critical substations over the coming decade.
In a report released today, the Committee warned that climate change will increase hazards such as flood risk to power assets. However, it added that the electricity transmission and distribution companies are taking a “comprehensive approach to assessing risks, investing in resilience, and reporting on the progress being made”.
A spokesperson for the Energy Networks Association (ENA) told Utility Week the report “recognises that our energy networks are leading the way in adapting vital infrastructure to meet the challenges of climate change and are approaching the issue with the seriousness it warrants”.
The network companies are “acutely aware of the vital role” they play, as well as the “potential economic and societal impact” of power disruption caused by severe weather, the group added. “Much of the work undertaken by network companies in recent years has focused on flooding, following the disruption caused by floods in 2007. Between 2008 and the end of current price controls in 2023, the transmission and distribution networks will have spent around £400 million on measures to enhance resilience to flooding.”
The Committee report identified five large power stations, 40 electricity transmission substations and 57 major electricity distribution substations which are located in “areas at a high likelihood of flooding”, after accounting for the presence of flood defences. The number of distribution and transmission substations in areas at a high flood risk is predicted to increase by 35 per cent and 77 per cent respectively.
The Committee pointed out that gas transmission networks are less exposed to climate hazards and are “inherently more reliable”. However, a failure in the gas transmission network would result in “more serious consequences” because of the high risk of explosions.
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