Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps the Government is taking to help energy suppliers improve gas storage to minimise the risk of a National Grid gas deficit warning this winter.

Great Britain benefits from a diverse range of gas supplies, including our indigenous production, which means that demand can be met even under severe weather conditions, as was the case in March 2018. The Government keeps gas security of supply under constant review producing, with Ofgem, annual security of supply reports for Parliament. National Grid, as the system operator, also produce a Winter Outlook each year. Both National Grid’s Winter Outlook and the statutory security of supply report conclude that gas supplies are secure this winter. As part of its ongoing work on security of supply, the Government is currently engaging with providers of flexible supply sources, including gas storage, on the trends in these markets and their implications for security of supply.