This Letter to the Editor, written by CO2 Coalition Member Euan Mearns, was published in The Press and Journal, December 8, 2023:

Sir, I imagine many P&J readers will be wearing woolly hats and jumpers, huddled around a candle trying to keep warm. It is very cold, calm and dark outside. Ideal conditions for excess winter deaths.

On Saturday 2 December I made a couple of spot checks on UK electricity supply and demand at 13:30 and 16:50. At 13:30 demand was 40 GW. The UK has 29 GW of installed wind capacity and 15 GW of installed solar PV giving a total for variable renewable energy of 44 GW, enough to cover all demand when it is windy and sunny. At 13:30 on Saturday, combined wind and solar were providing only 9.4% of demand and by 16:50 that had dropped to 3.8% of demand.

At 16:50, gas provided 56.1%, nuclear 11.4% and imports 14.3%. Those who claim wind and solar provide energy security are clearly deluded.

Euan Mearns PhD

Aberdeen