Writing in The Times, Dieter Helm, says he believes the UK is six years away from an energy crisis.

Disruption of supplies by protesters, the need to comply with European directives which mean coal-fired power stations will be shut down soon, the vulnerability of additional gas imports to international political shenanigans, the length of time it will take to build new nuclear power stations and doubts about the ability of wind power to provide sufficient replacement energy mean that we're not going to have enough energy supplies to keep the country working the way we'd probably expect.

He signs off by saying that the best way of coping with a future energy shortfall is for the economy not to recover quickly from the current recession -- because then we'll need less energy and it'll be easier to meet those reduced needs. But that's not a happy thought either!

Don't read it if you're already feeling depressed.