In an era where energy security is paramount, the United Kingdom’s growing dependence on imported power from neighbors like Norway underscores a harsh reality: true sovereignty over your energy future cannot be outsourced. Interconnectors—those undersea cables linking grids across borders—promise stability but deliver vulnerability. As Norway grapples with domestic unrest over skyrocketing electricity prices fueled by exports to the UK and EU, Britain’s strategy of buying energy abroad risks leaving it exposed to political whims and supply disruptions. Energy security starts at home, and relying on foreign suppliers is a fast track to losing control.
The Cracks in Norway’s Export ModelNorway, Europe’s hydroelectric powerhouse, has long been a linchpin in the continent’s energy supply. Since 2021, new interconnectors to the UK and Germany have funneled Norwegian hydropower southward, integrating the country’s southern price zones with the higher Continental market. This has been a boon for exporters but a burden for Norwegian households and businesses. Electricity prices in southern Norway have surged far beyond initial forecasts, creating a stark north-south divide where northern regions, shielded by limited transmission lines, enjoy cheaper power.
Are you Paying High Taxes in New Jersey, New York, or California?
The state-owned grid operator Statnett projected modest price hikes of just 0.2 to 0.3 pence per kilowatt-hour from these cables, but reality has been harsher. Norway’s audit watchdog has slammed the inconsistent analyses behind these estimates, fueling public outrage. With reservoirs at near 20-year lows, calls for export restrictions tied to water levels are growing louder. Conspiracy theories abound, with influencers like Sindre Wiig Nordby claiming the cables were designed to subsidize wind power without direct costs to Europeans. Eurosceptic parties point fingers at the EU’s energy agency, ACER, accusing it of overreach—though ACER’s influence is more about enforcing market rules than dictating exports.
This unease has turned energy into Norway’s most divisive political issue. The recent September 2025 election highlighted the tensions: Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre’s Labour Party scraped a second term with only 28% of the vote, forcing reliance on ad-hoc coalitions. No major party supports new interconnectors; the Centre Party views them as a sovereignty threat and pushes to renegotiate deals with the UK and Germany, while even the Conservatives have shifted to neutrality. The Greens, meanwhile, see high prices as a “feature, not a bug,” urging more exposure to wholesale markets to spur efficiency. The Progress Party, surging to 24% support, vows to overhaul trading arrangements. The result? An uneasy stalemate: no appetite for expansion, but no majority to dismantle existing cables either.
Voter Backlash and the Pivot to Oil and Gas
Norwegian voters are feeling the pinch directly. Exports to energy-hungry neighbors have driven up domestic bills, sparking backlash that played a key role in the coalition’s near-collapse earlier this year. In February 2025, the government unraveled over EU energy policy disputes, with the Centre Party withdrawing support amid fears that interconnectors prioritize foreign climate goals over local needs.
Public sentiment has soured on the “reliable supplier” narrative, with demands for curbs on exports during shortages. As one analysis noted post-election, the vote could restrict power flows to the EU, balancing energy security with climate ambitions.
Amid this turmoil, Norway is doubling down on its fossil fuel roots. Despite Europe’s push for renewables, the 2025 election revealed a “fossil consensus”: all major parties, from the far-right Progress to the Socialist Left, back continued oil and gas exploration. PM Støre has vowed to maintain Norway as a dependable supplier, emphasizing new drilling to offset hydropower volatility.
The Centre Party opposes electrifying offshore platforms, arguing scarce power should serve Norwegians first, not EU decarbonization dreams.
This shift signals a pragmatic retreat from over-reliance on intermittent green energy, prioritizing economic stability and voter demands over ideological purity.
Britain’s Perilous Dependence
For the UK, Norway’s domestic drama is more than a neighbor’s headache—it’s a direct threat. Britain imports up to 10% of its electricity from Norway during periods of low wind and solar output, a reliance baked into its net-zero strategy. If Norwegian reservoirs dwindle further or politics force export limits, blackouts loom larger. As one report warned, the collapse of Norway’s coalition earlier this year already heightened blackout risks for “Blackout Britain.”
With no new cables on the horizon and existing ones under scrutiny, the UK’s grid could face rationing or price spikes precisely when demand peaks.
This vulnerability stems from a policy choice: aggressive decarbonization that shutters domestic fossil fuels while betting on imports. Interconnectors were sold as a bridge to net zero, but they’ve exposed Britain to foreign policy volatility. Norway’s turning away from further integration—watching in dismay as the UK closes coal plants and Germany shutters nuclear—only amplifies the risk.
The Net Zero Trap: Bankruptcy and Deindustrialization
The UK’s commitment to net zero by 2050, with interim targets like clean power by 2035, is accelerating this dependency. But leaked government documents reveal the staggering cost: these plans could slash GDP by 10% by decade’s end, bankrupting households and businesses alike.
Higher energy prices from phasing out reliable sources are already driving industrial decline, with economists warning of years of factory closures as costs rocket.
The “net zero straitjacket” locks in elevated bills and curtails public choices, all in pursuit of unattainable ideals.
This isn’t unique to Britain. Across Europe, net zero policies are fueling deindustrialization. Germany’s Energiewende has led to economic meltdown, with industrial capacity decimated by soaring electricity prices and lost competitiveness.
Factories are fleeing to cheaper energy havens like the US and China, leaving behind job losses and stagnation. In 2025, Europe’s net-zero drive has sacrificed reliability for imports, exacerbating deindustrialization and energy poverty.
France, Italy, and others grapple with similar woes, as populism rises against policies that prioritize climate virtue over economic survival.
Even proponents admit the transition demands “economic renewal,” but evidence points to the opposite: a self-inflicted wound.
Abandoning the rigid 2030 net-zero milestones isn’t retreat—it’s realism. Countries like Norway are pivoting back to oil and gas for stability, proving that balanced energy mixes, not ideological extremes, secure prosperity. The UK should follow suit: unleash North Sea resources, as Conservative plans suggest, to rebuild domestic capacity and shield against foreign stalemates.
Securing Britain’s Energy Destiny
Norway’s energy impasse is a wake-up call. What starts as an “uneasy stalemate” could cascade into supply shocks for Britain, all because we’ve ceded control to interconnects and imports. Energy security begins domestically—with robust, homegrown supplies that weather political storms abroad. Ditching net zero’s most punitive targets isn’t environmental heresy; it’s economic salvation. As Europe reels from deindustrialization, Britain has a chance to chart a different path: one where energy powers growth, not grinds it to a halt.
In the United States, we all need to look closer to home and make sure that our homes and businesses can survive on an overloaded grid. Have a plan, and as a CEO, you should be looking at what safeguards to have in place for your business for backup power to keep the power and manufacturing moving. As the head of your house, you should also have a plan in case of storms or cyber attacks, or blackouts from the overloaded grid. Being an old scout, the motto “Be Prepared” really hits home when the lights go out.
Avoid Paying Taxes in 2025
Crude Oil, LNG, Jet Fuel price quote
ENB Top News
ENB
Energy Dashboard
ENB Podcast
ENB Substack