The Electricity (Non-Fossil Fuel Sources) (England and Wales) Order 1991

Made: 31st October 1991

Laid before Parliament: 5th November 1991

Coming into force: 6th November 1991

Now, therefore, the Secretary of State, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 32(1) of the said Act of 1989, and of all other enabling powers, after consultation in accordance with the requirements of the said section 32(1), hereby makes the following Order:–

Citation, commencement and application

1

• (1) This Order may be cited as the Electricity (Non-Fossil Fuel Sources) (England and Wales) Order 1991 and shall come into force on 6th November 1991.

• (2) This Order does not apply to Scotland.

Requirement to make arrangements etc.

2

Each public electricity supplier in England and Wales shall, before 20th November 1991, make (in so far as he has not already done so) and produce to the Director evidence showing that he has made such additional arrangements as will secure that for each period shown in Tables A to F in Schedule 1 (specified aggregate amounts of generating capacity) to this Order the aggregate amount of generating capacity available to him from non-fossil fuel generating stations of the description specified in the heading to each particular Table will not be less than the amount specified in that Table in relation to him for that period.

3

• (1) In this article, references to relevant arrangements are references to any arrangements evidence of the making of which is produced to the Director in accordance with article 2 of this Order.

• (2) Where any relevant arrangements–

• (a) provide that the availability to a supplier of some or all of the capacity of the non-fossil fuel generating station in question is conditional upon the satisfaction of any such requirement as is mentioned in Schedule 2 (conditions precedent) to this Order (whether the requirement in question is described in the terms of that Schedule or in terms to the like effect); and

• (b) result, on the first day of any specified period, in some or all of that capacity not being available to that supplier, by reason of any such requirement not being satisfied as was then due, or had previously been due on or prior to such date, under those arrangements to have been satisfied,

SCHEDULE 1 — SPECIFIED AGGREGATE AMOUNTS OF GENERATING CAPACITY

SCHEDULE 2 — CONDITIONS PRECEDENT

The requirements referred to in article 3(2)(a) of this Order are—

• (1) that planning permission and all necessary consents (including any necessary wayleave consents), easements and rights to enable any relevant non-fossil fuel generating station to be constructed and operated in accordance with and as contemplated by the terms of the relevant arrangements have been granted;

• (2) that planning permission and all necessary consents (including any necessary wayleave consents), easements and rights to enable any public electricity supplier in whose authorised area any relevant non-fossil fuel generating station is to be located to comply with his obligations as contemplated by the terms of the relevant arrangements have been granted;

• (3) that the operator of any relevant non-fossil fuel generating station or stations has entered into, and there has come into force, an agreement providing for the connection of such station or stations to a system of electric lines and electrical plant operated by a public electricity supplier in whose authorised area any relevant non-fossil fuel generating station is or will be located;

• (4) that the operator of any relevant non-fossil fuel generating station holds a licence or has the benefit of an exemption under Part I of the Act authorising him to generate electricity and to convey electricity from the place at which it is generated to the point of delivery for the purposes of the relevant arrangements;

• (5) (to the extent that the arrangements relate to a relevant non-fossil fuel generating station whose operator is so required) that the operator of any relevant non-fossil fuel generating station has entered into a pooling and settlement agreement, as required by the licence granted to him under section 6 of the Act, for the purpose of calculating the payments due to or owing by the parties thereto in respect of their production and consumption of electricity;

• (6) that there have been satisfactorily completed such procedures and tests as from time to time constitute usual industry standards and practices for commissioning a relevant non-fossil fuel generating station in order to—

• (a) demonstrate that the relevant non-fossil fuel generating station is capable of commercial operation for the purpose of the relevant arrangements;

• (b) establish the external physical conditions outside the control of the operator which are necessary for the operation of such station or which control the amount of electricity produced by the station; and

• (c) establish the operating parameters within which such station can be operated in accordance with practices, methods and procedures which are or should be adopted by a person exercising that degree of judgment, skill, diligence and foresight which would ordinarily and reasonably be expected from a skilled and experienced operator engaged in the business of operating such a station lawfully.

Note:

In the above provisions, “the Act” means the Electricity Act 1989.

SCHEDULE 3 — TERMINATION EVENTS

The events referred to in article 3(3)(a) of this Order are—

• (1) the operator of any relevant non-fossil fuel generating station ceasing for any reason to be authorised by a licence or exemption granted under the Act to generate electricity for the purposes of giving a supply to any premises or enabling a supply to be given;

• (2) the operator of any relevant non-fossil fuel generating station defaulting in the performance of any of his material obligations under the relevant arrangements and in the case of a default which is, in the opinion of the relevant public electricity supplier (acting reasonably), capable of remedy continuing to be unremedied at the expiry of 60 days following the date on which the supplier shall have given notice thereof to the operator;

• (3) a binding order being made or an effective resolution being passed for the winding up of the operator of any relevant non-fossil fuel generating station (otherwise than for the purposes of reconstruction or amalgamation on terms previously approved in writing by the relevant public electricity supplier (whose approval shall not unreasonably be withheld)) and within 28 days of his appointment the liquidator of the operator not having provided to the supplier a guarantee of performance of the obligations of the operator under the relevant arrangements in such form and amount as the supplier (acting reasonably) may require.

Note:

In the above provisions, “the Act” means the Electricity Act 1989.

Signed

John Wakeham — Secretary of State for Energy — 31st October 1991

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order imposes on public electricity suppliers in England and Wales obligations to make arrangements to secure the availability during specified periods of specified aggregate amounts of generating capacity from non-fossil fuel generating stations of particular descriptions. The arrangements must be made, and evidence of their making must be produced to the Director General of Electricity Supply, before 20th November 1991.

Article 2 , read with the Tables in Schedule 1, imposes on the suppliers obligations to secure the availability during specified periods of specified amounts of capacity from non-fossil fuel generating stations of the descriptions (wind, hydro, landfill gas, municipal and general industrial waste, sewage gas, or other) specified in the headings to the Tables. The amounts are specified in megawatts (one megawatt equals one million watts).

Article 3 provides a mechanism whereby, if certain conditions are not satisfied (see Schedule 2) or if certain events occur (see Schedule 3), the Order is to have effect as if the relevant period specified in the appropriate Table in Schedule 1 were replaced by a different period and, as a consequence of that, as if the relevant amount of capacity specified in that Table were a reduced amount, the amount of the reduction being the amount of capacity which has ceased to be available by reason of (as the case may be) the condition not having been satisfied or the event having occurred.

Footnotes

[^f00001]: S.I. 1990/263, as amended by S.I. 1990/494; S.I. 1990/1859.

[^f00002]: 1989 c. 29.