Coal, Gas and Electricity

Reviews of United Kingdom Statistical Sources

D. J. Harris, H. Nabb, D. Nuttall, W. F. Maunder

• Publisher: Pergamon
• Year: 2013
• Print ISBN:
  9780080224619
• eBook ISBN:
  9781483153063
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Business General
• Index: Business

Coal, Gas and Electricity is a review of statistical data available for three fuel industries in the United Kingdom: coal, gas, and electricity. Topics covered include energy planning, comparability of fuels, published energy statistics, and energy consumption. This volume is comprised of five chapters and begins by explaining the purpose of energy statistics, such as to provide figures for the total production and consumption of energy and to identify the consumption of energy in sectors of the economy. A brief summary of industry activity concerned and its organization is given in order to present a clear background understanding of how data are collected; what is being measured; the stage at which measurements are made; what the reporting units are; the channels through which returns are routed; and where they are processed. The formulation of a national energy research and development strategy in the United Kingdom is then discussed, along with the comparability of fuels and government-published energy statistics. The last chapter presents statistics on energy consumption. This book will be of interest to energy officials, statisticians, economists, and social science researchers.

Review No. 21

Electricity

Outline

Chapter 37: REFERENCE DATE OF SOURCES REVIEWED

Chapter 38: ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Chapter 39: ADDENDUM

Chapter 40: INTRODUCTION

Chapter 41: BEFORE NATIONALISATION

Chapter 42: AFTER NATIONALISATION

Chapter 43: STATISTICS IN THE MODERN ELECTRICITY INDUSTRY

Chapter 44: FINANCIAL STATISTICS

Chapter 45: STATISTICS OF OTHER COMMERCIAL SERVICES

Chapter 46: EMPLOYEE STATISTICS

Chapter 47: RESEARCH

Chapter 48: CONCLUSION

REFERENCE DATE OF SOURCES REVIEWED

This review is believed to represent the position, broadly speaking, as it obtained in 1977. The Addendum (p. 204) has been added at proof reading stage, May 1979, taking account as far as possible of any major changes in the situation.

INDEX TO INITIALS USED IN THE TEXT OR IN QUOTED REFERENCES

AGB	Audits of Great Britain
AMDEA	Association of Manufacturers of Domestic Electrical Appliances
BEAMA	British Electrical Appliance Manufacturers’ Association
BS	British Standards Institution
CEGB	Central Electricity Generating Board
D of E	Department of Energy
E & W	England and Wales
EC	Electricity Council
ECRC	Electricity Council Research Centre
EEB	Eastern Electricity Board
EEC	European Economic Community
EMEB	East Midlands Electricity Board
GJ	Gigajoule
GVA	Gigavolt-ampere
GW	Gigawatt
GWh	Gigawatt hour
HMSO	Her Majesty’s Stationery Office
IEE	Institute of Electrical Engineers
km	Kilometer
kVA	Kilovolt-ampere
kVAh	Kilovolt-ampere hour
kW	Kilowatt
kWh	Kilowatt hour
LEB	London Electricity Board
LF	Load Factor
MANWEB	Merseyside & North Wales Electricity Board
MD	Maximum Demand
MEB	Midlands Electricity Board
MJ	Megajoule
MVA	Megavolt-ampere
MW	Megawatt
MWh	Megawatt hour
NCB	National Coal Board
NEEB	North Eastern Electricity Board
NIES	Northern Ireland Electricity Service
NSHEB	North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board
NWEB	North Western Electricity Board
QRL	Quick Reference List
SEB	Southern Electricity Board
SEEB	South Eastern Electricity Board
SMD	Simultaneous Maximum Demand
SSEB	South of Scotland Electricity Board
SWaEB	South Wales Electricity Board
SWEB	South Western Electricity Board
TWH	Terawatt hour
UK	United Kingdom
UN	United Nations
YEB	Yorkshire Electricity Board

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

A work such as this, aiming to cover the output from so many undertakings and activities, requires the help of very many people—all of them busy coping with the demands of modern management for data which will help them in the constant drive for more efficient control. I hope I do not forget anyone but apologise in advance if I do.

Primarily, for the provision of facilities for digging out much of the information I must thank the Chairman, Mr E. Booth, and Chief Commercial Officer, Mr N. Osborn, of the Yorkshire Electricity Board.

For the never failing, patient and efficient response to my request for more and more information about sources, thanks to Mr H. Forshaw, Mr W. Sewell, Mr A. Matthews, Mr R. Robinson, Mrs D. Webley, Mrs H. Burnett, and Mrs J. Lee—all of the Commercial Department of the YEB, and to Mr H. Hammersley, Mr A. Bridge, Mr B. Brown, Mr A. Barker, and Mr N. Jackson of the Engineering, Accountancy, and Secretarial Departments.

The Commercial Adviser to the Electricity Council, Mr R. Forman, allowed me the run of his department, within which I must pick out Mr T. A. Boley, Mr G. G. Petersen, Dr J. M. W. Rhys, and Mr J. G. Boggis for particular mention.

Mr R. G. Hancock, Head of the Intelligence Section of the Electricity Council, was particularly good in giving me the benefit of his very wide experience of information gathering over many years and allowing me the use of the superb collection of statistics in the Electricity Council’s Library.

Mr P. E. Watts of the CEGB not only gave me lots of information but was typically trenchant in his comments on the use I made of it.

I owe more generalised thanks for the essential source data supplied by the South of Scotland Electricity Board, the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board, and the Northern Ireland Electricity Service.

At, and following a critical symposium dealing with an early draft of this work I received much constructive criticism, particularly from Dr S. Rosenbaum, Mr W. N. T. Roberts, and Mr W. A. Hawkins.

Before undertaking this project I had never realised the invaluable part which could be played by an editor. Professor W. E. Maunder, and Mrs J. Horwood of his department, have put their impress on this work and without them I have no doubt it would never have materialised at all, let alone in the relatively tight and tidy version now published.

Notwithstanding all these acknowledgements I of course accept responsibility for any errors or omissions.

Finally I must not only acknowledge the forbearance of my wife in not complaining about a house littered with papers for months on end, but in giving practical help in proof reading, and not being above the odd comment on my occasional diversions from a truly objective approach to some of the economic statistics.

ADDENDUM

The main body of this review represents the position in 1977. The following notes account for differences up to mid-1979 in the statistics for England and Wales.

1. The Electricity Council Annual Report [QRL 3] for 1977/78 included for the first time a section on performance indicators. Three diagrams were included, showing:

(i) the trend in delivered costs of fuel alongside the trend in the retail price index and in the average price per kWh;

(ii) the trend in the number of employees in the industry alongside employees per unit sold; and

(iii) the trend in thermal efficiency of fossil fuel steam stations alongside the trend in load factor in ACS conditions.

These diagrams are appearing in the 1978/79 Report, together with an additional diagram showing the trend in industrial electricity prices alongside the wholesale price index.

2. The financial statements in the 1977/78 Annual Report [QRL 3] continued on an historic cost basis, but as a first move towards inflation accounting 40% supplemen tary depreciation was added to the normal provision for depreciation at historic cost. The supplementary depreciation was itemised in the Consolidated Accounts.

In the 1978/79 Annual Report 40% supplementary depreciation is again being charged and in addition an inflation accounting statement is included to demonstrate the possible effects of inflation accounting on the industry. It must be emphasized that this statement is only a demonstration; the industry has not yet moved away from historic cost accounting.

3. The 1978 Handbook of Electricity Supply Statistics [QRL 23] contained four new tables:

(i) CEGB Bulk Supply Tariff—analysis of revenue. This table gave figures already provided in the CEGB Annual Report [QRL 4].

(ii) A table showing the development of the electricity industry in Northern Ireland. This was derived from figures published by the Northern Ireland Electricity Service.

(iii) An analysis of sales of electricity to industrial consumers and transport undertakings in Great Britain, taken from the Digest of UK Energy Statistics [QRL 13].

(iv) A comparison of average prices of fuels used by the gas and electricity supply industries in Great Britain, taken from the Digest of UK Energy Statistics.

4. The table on ownership levels of electrical appliances in selected European countries was omitted from the 1978 Handbook [QRL 23] because up-to-date figures were not available. It was not re-introduced in 1979.

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Publisher Summary

This chapter discusses the statistical sources for the electricity supply industry as it has evolved from the time of nationalization. It covers the generation, main transmission, and retail distribution of electrical energy, the other commercial activities of the industry, such as the retailing of domestic and commercial electrical appliances, the contracting service which it sells to the public, and the research activities of the industry. Before nationalization, the supply industry had relatively minor connections ...

Table of contents

• Cover image
• Title page
• Table of Contents
• REVIEWS OF UNITED KINGDOM STATISTICAL SOURCES
• Copyright
• FOREWORD
• MEMBERSHIP OF THE JOINT STEERING COMMITTEE (October 1978)
• INTRODUCTION
• Energy—a Prologue
• Review No. 19: Coal
• Review No. 20: Gas
• Review No. 21: Electricity
• QUICK REFERENCE LIST—TABLE OF CONTENTS
• BIBLIOGRAPHY
• QUICK REFERENCE LIST—TABLE OF CONTENTS
• BIBLIOGRAPHY
• SUBJECT INDEX TO COAL
• QUICK REFERENCE LIST—TABLE OF CONTENTS
• BIBLIOGRAPHY
• APPENDIX
• SUBJECT INDEX TO GAS
• QUICK REFERENCE LIST—TABLE OF CONTENTS
• BIBLIOGRAPHY
• APPENDICES
• SUBJECT INDEX TO ELECTRICITY