Substation fires: Electrical centres are catching fire across the country - what the problem might be
Concerns have been raised that a spate of substation fires are due to the UK’s ageing infrastructure.
Given that theories have previously circulated that Russian interference may have been behind the paralysing Heathrow substation fire which shut down the airport for almost a whole day in March, this may come as comfort to some.
But as a recent Telegraph article has pointed out: “ Of the roughly £70 billion (in 2023-24 prices) of assets on transmission company balance sheets, around £30 billion, or 40 per cent, dates from before 1975.”
A huge chunk of the UK’s network is using 1960s technology. As society moves towards net zero - and as internet and AI platforms guzzle more and more electricity - extra strain will be placed on the National Grid and its equipment. And this could pose problems.
Previously, the boss of National Grid has been bullish about his organisation’s ability to cope - and its reliability.
Speaking to the PA news agency after the Heathrow fires and some Tube power outages, John Pettigrew said the two incidents were “isolated and unconnected” and added that the resilience of the power grid is “very robust”.
On May 12 Transport for London was forced to close the Elizabeth, Bakerloo, Jubilee and Northern lines after a fault on National Grid’s transmission network. The malfunction also caused a blaze at an electrical substation in Maida Vale.
Mr Pettigrew said: “In terms of broader resilience for network, I’d say that these incidents are not pointing to anything systemic.”
Power networks are being more closely scrutinised across Europe after a massive outage hit vast swathes of Spain in February. The country’s energy minister Sara Aagesen said that the blackout was triggered by a sudden loss of power at a substation in Granada.
Mr Pettigrew said: “It will be important to look at the outcome of that investigation and see what it means for us.”
National Grid, a company listed on the London Stock Exchange, owns vast swathes of the power grid across Britain. It is partway through a £60 billion investment programme across the energy networks it manages, including the so-called Great Grid Upgrade in England, Scotland and Wales.
The works are a large part of the government’s plans to decarbonise the power grid by 2030, which also involves building vast amounts of new wind and solar farms.
Mr Pettigrew said the switch to renewable energy sources and the fast changes to how the energy grid works would not raise the risks of blackouts in the UK.
He said: “The UK, we have world class reliability. We invest massively in the asset health and resilience of the network. If you look at some of the core indicators of the overall condition of the network (such as unplanned unavailability of assets) that actually continued to improve over the last decade. There’s no evidence of any deterioration in the reliability of the network. We just have to keep focused on it.”
Substation fires across the UK this spring
June 19 - Firefighters called to the Astonfields area of Stafford, and just over 1,000 homes were left without power.
May 21 - Dozens of homes across Romsey in Hampshire were without power after a substation in Budds Lane went up in smoke.
May 18 - Essex firefighters dealt with a fire at an electricity substation in Wickford High Street
May 12 - A second fire in less than two weeks at an electricity substation in Lisson Grove, Maida Vale, cut power to homes and affected Underground and Overground services including the Bakerloo, Waterloo & City, Suffragette, and Weaver lines. Marble Arch, Tottenham Court Road, and Covent Garden station were temporarily closed
May 11 - Properties were evacuated after a substation fire off Fore Street in the centre of Exeter.
April 29 - The first fire at the Lisson Grove substation in Maida Vale, west London, with smoke pouring into the air..
April 29 - On the same day, hundreds of homes were without power in Kidderminster after a fire. Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service were called to a substation in The Patios.
March 23 - A fire in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, knocked out power to hundreds of homes
March 20 - A fire in a substation in Hayes, west London, knocked out power to Heathrow, closing it for most of the following day. About 67,000 homes were without power and more than 100 people were evacuated