Short rolling power cuts could be brought in to save energy supplies in favour of blackouts this winter - which the Met Office has suggested could be colder than usual.
National Grid boss John Pettigrew has said it hopes the UK will have enough energy to meet demand this winter, but warned that short outages may be needed if other measures to preserve supplies fail.
Speaking to the BBC, the energy supply boss explained that National Grid is doing everything to ensure that infrastructure and networks are ready for the winter ahead.
"There could be energy shortfalls in the UK and we will manage that very carefully," Pettigrew told the publication. He added: "This isn't a time for people to panic."
It comes after the Met Office has released its UK three-month outlook, which, among other things, is used for energy consumption planning.
The outlook report states: "With chances of a cold season being greater than a mild one, impacts from wintry weather are more likely than seen in recent years."
Last month, Pettigrew spoke at the Financial Times's Energy Transition Summit, and warned that power cuts could happen on the "really, really cold" winter days
However, there are measures in place to reduce energy consumption, which are also hoped to reduce the likelihood of the planned outages.
One measure is the "Demand Flexibility Service", which will see households incentivised to use energy-guzzling devices when there is less demand.
The opt-in scheme is available to households with smart meters and will notify customers when they should cut back on consumption - paying them the equivalent of £3 per kWh in credit in their energy account.
The scheme kicked off on November 1 and will run until March of 2023.
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