Sept. 1, 2009 (Daily Mail) -- Britain faces the first widespread power blackouts since the 1970s because of looming energy shortages, Government documents reveal.
For the first time, ministers are expecting that the supply of electricity will fail to meet demand at peak times.
The Government is forecasting that by 2017 there will be power cuts of around 3,000 megawatt hours per year - the equivalent of the whole of Nottingham being without electricity for a day.
Official papers show that consumers will be hit by an 'energy gap' when a number of existing power stations are shut down.