Electricity costs poised for record

Prices in the electricity pool are expected to reach a record high tomorrow as the gap between supply and demand narrows, writes Mary Fagan.

The price is likely to reach more than 60p a unit during the evening, compared with last week's record of about 45p during a half-hour period and only a few pence at times of low demand. The average will be 8.1p per unit for tomorrow compared with 1p on some days during the summer months.

The price spikes are due to two nuclear power stations run by state-owned Nuclear Electric being taken off the system temporarily because of problems with welds. National Power said that more than half the price was due to payments made to the generatorsto keep plant available to meet demand, even if the plant did not run.

The payment, which is in addition to the price paid for generating power, is also higher than usual because of the cold spell. The spike in prices will fuel the anger of ICI, the largest consumer of electricity in Britain.

The company has already said it will consider asking for a Monopolies and Mergers Commission investigation into the industry because of the cost of power.