There is no doubt that gas is having an impact on the lives of just about everyone just now. What previously had a role simply as a means of cooking and heating in homes and offices has now become the single biggest factor in the cost of living crisis, thanks to the soaring energy costs produced by energy sanctions against Russia and the consequent shortage of alternatives.
All that has pushed up the price of gas and while government action to curb prices and an actual drop in wholesale gas costs recently have brought a hint of some relief and perhaps an end in sight to soaring inflation, the fact is that the whole crisis has brought the question of the future of gas into sharp relief.
Clearly the future in the long term will be for all ovens to be electric. You may still need oven cleaning services, but there won’t be any gas pipes. Instead, they will be powered by low or zero-carbon energy sources, from nuclear to wind, solar and hydro. The chances are that this future is now moving nearer, and faster than before, driven both by green concerns and the war.
Writing on the subject earlier this year, Chef’s Pick noted that there had been reports in 2019 that the government was looking to phase out gas cookers and hobs by 2025, but there is no firm policy in place for this.
It concluded that gas will remain an option for householders for the foreseeable future, although it was notable that this article did not consider the question of the impact of the war.
Now that Liz Truss’s pledge to bring back fracking has been axed by Rishi Sunak, it seems Britain will move towards phasing out gas, which the country ceased to be self-sufficient in years ago.
While Britain’s imports are primarily from Norway and the UK has not relied much on Russian gas, unlike countries such as Germany, the exposure to global pressures will still add momentum to its phasing out, with or without any clear steer from the government.