Switching light bulbs to LEDs could ease blackout fears, Greenpeace says

As National Grid prepares to release its winter outlook report on electricity and gas supplies for the coming months, Greenpeace said a drive to switch homes, street lights and offices to LED lights could deliver a major reduction in demand. National Grid published an initial assessment of this winter's energy situation in July, in which it said the gap between total electricity generating capacity and peak demand would fall to just 0.1% at the height of a cold spell without action. But with measures it had taken to provide a safety net, paying large energy users to reduce demand during winter weekday evenings and keeping power stations in reserve that would otherwise be closed or mothballed, the margin was 5.5%