that should be paid at the high rate. It's true that paying everybody as if they had high production costs provides an incentive for renewable investment, but this doesn't seem like a particularly efficient way to encourage renewables. In fact it gives renewable producers a theoretical incentive

Imagine the headlines if we paid the real price.

Pretty low now though 😉

I very much suspect that the solar and wind operators are running a bonanza day every day where gas is part of the energy mix.

Electricity generators of last resort can charge anything they like; hence we should just nationalise them for the last few years that we need them

My suspicion (and that is all it is) is that part of incentivising investment into renewables is to make it an excessively profitable enterprise, with bill payers stumping up for infrastructure we ultimately don’t own

I'd be really interested if anyone has any actual knowledge of where the money goes. Do the renewable generators get a massive pay boost every time gas is turned on? (Effectively every day) Surely this can't be the case.

For people prepared to pay what the market says it is cheap. It is just balanced by some expensive days (although not many recently) agileprices.co.uk/

There is a Sticking Point with Gas in the South West of the UK, mainly because all the Big Wind Farms are in Scotland, and there aren't enough further South, requiring Expensive and Intrusive Pylons to Bridge the Gap.Scotland often has to Curtail 2 GW or so of Wind Power when the South is using Gas.

The Biggest Obstacles to Distributing Curtailed Wind Power is the Opposition of Electricity Pylons in National Parks. Snowdonia is strongly opposed, and also Northumbernand, where many people aren't even connected to the National Grid at all ! www.snowdonia-society.org.uk/news/no-new-pylons-in-wales-national-parks/

Obtrusive 400 kV Pylons have been removed across the Yorkshire Dales and the Peak District, and there will undoubtefly be a lot of opposition to new ones. www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-63344578

There should be a more even distribution of Windfarms across all Regions. It's a Myth to say it's only Windy in Scotland. A First for the South West, "Portwind", off the South Coast near Weymouth is many years away. portwind.co.uk/

The Countryside Alliance is strongly opposed to more 400 kV Pylons. But could you not connect Pothamadog and Swansea North Substations together with an Offshore Link Cable for at least some of the Gap. www.countryside-alliance.org/news-content-type/93-oppose-pylons-in-wales-countryside-alliance-warns-of-health-economic-and-environmental-risks

There are Plans for an Offshore "West Green Link 2" Connection, linking a new Windfarm off Western Scotland, and also conndcting to Kilmanock in Ayrshire, and Bangor in North Wales. www.spenergynetworks.co.uk/pages/western_link_2.aspx href="/search?t=posts&q=tablist1-panel1">#tablist1-panel1

If a Connection from Morocco to Alverdiscott was ever a Serious Proposal, surely connecting Alverdiscott to North Swansea should be easier than charging your Leaf in Blaneau Ffestiniog ! monaghan.ie/planning/xlinks-morocco-uk-power-project/

Ayr Ire tells me that a 2GW Offshore Interconnector from Kilmarnock to Alverdiscott would cost between £2-3½ billion. If it operated continuously, it would be worth £100,000 per hour if worth £50 per GWhr Gas Equivalent, or worth upto £1¾ billion a Year if continuously delivering Curtailed Wind.

It's now 85.5% (1.40 pm) - the wholesale cost is negative, but there are so many costs due to legacy systems that the consumer price is still high! We need more grid-level storage (like the pumped hydro schemes due between 2028 and 2035) and less 'always on' old tech.

Shhh! Don't tell our politicians. It would look like they've been lying to us for years, saying it's impossible.

Isn’t it negative? Or do I misread the page?

While I totally agree re pricing I found this from “Electricity without Dynamos: the coming revolution in power generation” by John W. Gardner. Published in 1963…

In the words of Fat Boy Slim: We’ve come a long way, baby…

Also something about Better Living Through Chemistry…

That needs decoupling so badly.

But profits, Bob, the profits...

Same crap here in Australia, so much for free market solutions providing better more cost effective and efficient energy solutions to customers. Market solutions strangely seem to have a habit of lining corporate pockets with cash for inescapable corporate/investor greed to be satisfied.

Effing typical.

NESO says 85% zero carbon at 11:00 am

Yes and also grid inertia - stability.

Price seems not to be set by gas - at least for agile customers.