LONDON, Jan. 29 (Xinhua) -- Britain's trade in energy with the European Union (EU) will be put at risk by the country's departure from the bloc, a report by politicians in the House of Lords warned Monday.
The British parliament's EU Energy and Environment Sub-Committee has been investigating energy security, looking at the implications of Brexit on energy supply, consumer costs and de-carbonization.
The committee, which concludes that Brexit will put the UK's current trade in energy with the EU at risk, has called on the government to set out how it will work with the EU to anticipate and manage supply shortages.
It also wants the government to assess what impact leaving the Internal Energy Market (IEM) would have on the price paid by consumers for their energy.
The committee heard that Britain's ability to build future nuclear generation sites, including the Hinkley Point C power plant currently under construction, is in question if access to specialist EU workers is curtailed.
The evidence from the energy company EDF was clear, said the report, that without access to EU labour, it would be difficult to complete construction of the new nuclear power facility at Hinkley Point.
The committee also heard that EU investment had made a significant contribution to constructing and maintaining a secure energy system in the UK, and that replacing this funding will be critical to ensuring sufficient infrastructure is in place to enable future energy trading," the report stated.
It also concluded that, post-Brexit, the UK may be more vulnerable to energy shortages in the event of extreme weather or unplanned generation outages.
Committee chairperson Lord Teverson said: "Individuals and businesses across the UK depend on a reliable and affordable supply of energy. In recent years, the UK has achieved such a supply in partnership with the EU, working with other member states to make cross-border trade in energy easier and cheaper."
Teverson said it was still uncertain whether this situation could continue without remaining in the (European) single market, IEM and the other bodies that develop and implement the EU's energy policy.
