Dry Run for this Winter in NZ?

Must go and buy that generator

Blackouts hit thousands as generators fail

The Times 27 May Hundreds of thousands of people were hit by electricity blackouts (in UK) yesterday when seven power stations shut down. The unscheduled stoppages were regarded as an unprecedented sign of the fragility of Britain’s power infrastructure.

Operations were cancelled, people were stuck in lifts, traffic lights failed and fire engines were sent out on false alarms. Householders were unable to use any appliances or make phonecalls as the blackouts hit areas including Cleveland, Cheshire, Lincolnshire and London.

Interestingly, the BBC claims only two power stations were affected:

news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7422817.stm

The Times article seems quite sensational in comparison:

www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article4016552.ece

Probably because The Times is owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation (which uncoincidentally owns Fox News).

A

It is all a conspiracy Ame will the Independent suffice?

'Britain was hit by electricity blackouts as a string of power station shutdowns wreaked havoc on the national generating system yesterday.

National Grid issued a highly unusual plea to electricity suppliers to reduce the voltage to homes ......National Grid cut off supplies automatically to "protect the integrity of the network," a spokesman said. As the day wore on, however, a total of nine power stations shut down ...'

Well I wish you had included a link:

www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news...shutdown-835315.html

Certainly seems more moderate than The Times. Interesting that the BBC didn't follow up its article with a mention of the other 7 generators that were affected.

The Independent is owned by Independent News and Media. According to Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independent_News_%26_Media

"The company owns a 40.3% stake in APN News and Media Limited, a large newspaper publisher in Australia and New Zealand , which owns, for example, the New Zealand Herald, and is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange ."

(apropos of nothing in particular, but I think it is a good thing not to take media reports (and other things) at face value).

A

I wonder what the sun said.....

"Phew! What a scorcher!"

ame;171449 wrote: .....apropos of nothing in particular, but I think it is a good thing not to take media reports (and other things) at face value).

A

I don't Ame (which is why I subscribe to The Economist and use Google News to get a wide cross section of media reports) but I equally don't suffer from the paranoia that the whole outside world is a conspiracy to delude me - otherwise I would move to Montana and join one of the militia movements.

GBPeter - I'm with you. Go buy the generator. I was doing some research today and in my ignorance discovered what I consider an appalling breach of national security - well power is isn't it. Here goes...

" 60% of generation comes from hydro sources. NZ hydro storage capacity is also relevantly small in comparison to other markets around the world. If completely reliant on hydro generation, we have maximum 6 weeks storage available to supply NZ needs. Compare with some Scandanavian markets who have 2 - 3 years storage."

No wonder they are panicking!! And this Government has placed a 10 year ban on new thermal generation?

Add to that...

"Operating in the NZ Electricity Market is a risky business and as the gap between demand and supply decreases, pressure is put on market participants to increase generation with no change in generation assets. Simple economics suggests that prices will rise as generation sources become increasingly scarce.

How much does a generator cost?

HEHE still got my 2 generators as we need them to do shearing and off line welding hope power aint off long, cant afford fuel

DiDi

All I want is a 2kva one to run the freezers (and the computer) in an emergency - but it is about $1K for a reasonable petrol one - we have lots of power cuts here but never more than a couple of hours so far which is not a problem. SO - do I want to spend $1K as an insurance 'just in case' - still dithering

talk to powerguy and go completely off grid

If anyone is thinking of buying insurance in the form of a generator PLEASE be a little discerning. I see so many dissatisfied people that bought cheap Chinese gensets "just in case". Quality control is terrible. You may end up with a reasonable one but you would be one out of 50. Chances are you will have a piece of relatively expensive junk. A good, reliable European made genset will set you back around $8k for 7kVa but it will last and deliver good quality power.