Preparedness for when

[Deleted User]

BBC news has just said Russia has shut down the gas pipeline to Ukraine due to debts. This combined with the crisis in Iraq which will certainly affect the price and availability of fuel is I suspect going to cause a bit of bother in the near future. I'm glad we've put the measures in place that we have but if you still have things on the 'to do' list and can afford them now, now is the time 'to do' them while they are still available . Also, fill the car up with whatever fuel you use and if possible keep a full tank. Hope this comes over as precautionary and not scare mongering, better safe and ahead of the game than sorry by being late. The other thing I think would be sensible is to bring in any stored equipment from outbuildings, things like kelly kettles will be very desirable if you have no means of heating water and they'll hopefully stay in your hands longer if they're indoors.

No mention of the gas pipeline on the lunchtime news, this is odd, the announcement came mid morning when I had the TV on in the background while I was doing some ironing, don't know why only then???

maryb

I found this
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-27862849

which says that Gazprom will continue to supply gas to Europe. Not sure how they're going to do that if the pipeline runs through Ukraine?

maryb

DT piece says Europe IS facing gas shortage
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/ukraine/10902271/Europe-faces-gas-shortage-as-Russia-cuts-Ukraine-supply-after-talks-fail.html

[Deleted User]

Many thanks Mary, I was beginning to think I'd posted absolute gobbledegook and had imagined the whole thing, maybe it will feature on a later BBC News today, very odd old world when the hype over the world cup takes precedence over something as potentially disruptive as losing the gas supply isn't it???

How many of our electricity generation power stations are gas fuelled these days??? does this mean the likelihood of power outages now???

Frugalsod

One thing that might help a lot if fuel becomes an issue is learning alternatives to cooking. I use a microwave a lot and so can get a full meal reheated or cooked in 7 minutes. While I doubt that power supply will be that short it is also very quick and efficient in terms of energy usage.

jk0

MrsLurcherwalker wrote: »

Many thanks Mary, I was beginning to think I'd posted absolute gobbledegook and had imagined the whole thing, maybe it will feature on a later BBC News today, very odd old world when the hype over the world cup takes precedence over something as potentially disruptive as losing the gas supply isn't it???

How many of our electricity generation power stations are gas fuelled these days??? does this mean the likelihood of power outages now???

I wonder if this shortage may be a blessing in disguise:

I keep praying that TPTB will see the light and stop closing down working coal fired power stations. I hope that this present crisis may give them pause for thought.

nuatha

MrsLurcherwalker wrote: »

Many thanks Mary, I was beginning to think I'd posted absolute gobbledegook and had imagined the whole thing, maybe it will feature on a later BBC News today, very odd old world when the hype over the world cup takes precedence over something as potentially disruptive as losing the gas supply isn't it???

How many of our electricity generation power stations are gas fuelled these days??? does this mean the likelihood of power outages now???

According to William Hague, when the current situation was just kicking off, only 1% of the UK's gas came from Russia and that could easily be shipped from the USA. At the same time it was stated that Germany relied on Russia for 34% of its requirements.

Of course nothing is more important than the World Cup and other sporting events and we shouldn't expect any none sports news.(removes tongue from cheek)

greenbee

We've never been a huge consumer of Russian gas, as we don't like being at the end of such a long pipeline. We've always been more interested in nordic gas - I'm a bit out of date but I think quite a bit of our gas comes in via the langeled pipeline to Easington. We get some European gas via the interconnector at Bacton (connects with the Netherlands) and we may access Russian gas that way, but Norwegian gas also comes into Europe at Zeebrugge, so it may just come back to us from there. We also export gas via Bacton, although I suspect not so much goes out now as comes in.

We also have the capacity to import LNG (which arrives on ships) somewhere in the London area and somewhere in Wales. Mostly it comes from Qatar, but some from the US and again we can get it from scandinavia.

On the gas side of things there HAS been some planning. ALthough possibly not enough (then again the gas field in Quatar is so huge they have to include the curvature of the earth in the calculations when working out the gas volume apparently).

Electricity is our biggest problem, not helped by the fact that we moved to centralised generation and distribution. Electricity doesn't travel well and you lose a huge amount in transmission. If you go to scandinavia, as well as lots of renewables, you find lots of LOCAL generation. It also helps with the planning process as communities can get involved in the decision on the generation mix in their area as they know it is supplying the local community, not vast cities on the other side of the country.

Frugalsod

nuatha wrote: »

According to William Hague, when the current situation was just kicking off, only 1% of the UK's gas came from Russia and that could easily be shipped from the USA. At the same time it was stated that Germany relied on Russia for 34% of its requirements.

Of course nothing is more important than the World Cup and other sporting events and we shouldn't expect any none sports news.(removes tongue from cheek)

Unfortunately I think that the US has an export ban on fossil fuels so no chance of us getting it from there, plus shale gas is peaking there and it might be all gone by the end of the decade, or too expensive to get. Longer term we need to adjust to energy prices being considerably higher than they are now. Coal is also a short term solution. If we keep burning the stuff we can kiss goodbye to much of the UK as sea levels rise. Where I live will probably be a beach by the end of the century and I am currently about 5m above sea level.

Conservation is the best policy and energy efficiency. But that is not good for oil company profits, so the government might slash that spending.

cornishchick

Hi all . Sorry I have been missing from the awesome world Of prepping.
But I return cap in hand so say, I have added to my stocks. And have a store of 46 loo rolls hidden under the bed.
The most important prep I have done is invest in 2 lovely bottles of taskler whiskey while on offer.. If the SHTF I will need its smoky sweet comfort as I watch the world end..:cool:

By the way does anyone know if I can charge my e cigarette of the car. Via a USB charger in the cigarette lighter? I can't find any info this and don't understand volts watts ect? .???