Energy Act 2004

Security of supply

172 Annual report on security of energy supplies

(1) The Secretary of State must, in 2005 and in every subsequent calendar year—

(a) publish a report dealing, as regards both the short term and the long term, with the availability of electricity and gas for meeting the reasonable demands of consumers in Great Britain; and

(b) lay that report before Parliament.

(2) The report must include, in particular, overall assessments, as regards both the short term and the long term, of each of the following—

(a) generating capacity in Great Britain and its offshore waters so far as it will be utilised for generating electricity for introduction into transmission systems in Great Britain;

(b) the availability of capacity in those systems and in distribution systems in Great Britain for transmitting and distributing electricity for supply to consumers in Great Britain;

(c) the availability of capacity in infrastructure in Great Britain for use in connection with the introduction of gas into licensed pipe-line systems in Great Britain; and

(d) the availability of capacity in those systems for conveying gas to consumers in Great Britain.

(3) The report must be prepared jointly by the Secretary of State and GEMA.

(4) In this section—

• “consumers” includes both existing and future consumers;

• “distributing”, “distribution system”, “transmission system” and “transmitting” have the same meanings as in Part 1 of the 1989 Act;

• “gas” and “gas transporter” have the same meanings as in Part 1 of the Gas Act 1986 (c. 44);

• “infrastructure” includes pipe-line systems, terminals and other facilities but does not include licensed pipe-line systems;

• “licensed pipe-line system” means a pipe-line system that is operated by a gas transporter for the conveyance of gas to any premises or another pipe-line system as authorised by his licence under section 7 of that Act;

• “offshore waters” means, in relation to Great Britain—

  (a)

  so much of the territorial sea of the United Kingdom as is adjacent to Great Britain; and

  (b)

  waters in a Renewable Energy Zone (within the meaning of Chapter 2 of Part 2 of this Act).