Coal-fired generation in a privatised electricity supply industry

Since privatisation of the UK Electricity Supply Industry, the merit-order for the dispatch of generating plant has undergone radical changes. In Scotland, where the electricity companies have a broad-based generation portfolio, base load is now usually carried by a combination of nuclear and gas-fired generation. Hydroelectricity has nov; moved to a much less well-defined position for generation, partly because of its seasonal variability. However, the major consequence of this arrangement has been that coal-fired generation has slipped in the merit-order from the days of Nationalisation and now occupies a mid-merit position. This changed role for coal has imposed new requirements on engineers involved in the operation of, and generation planning for, coal-fired power stations. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.