ThisisbadnewsforDresden'sswimmers, butit's especially detrimental toGermany'senergytransition, whichdepends onbackuppowerplantslike the Niederwarthafacility.
Neither solar nor wind are powerful enough to carry the heavy load that a backup generator must provide to a facility such as a hospital or a school or a county prison.
The Gateshead facility also serves as a backup plant for the Bank of England, which has a separate contract with De La Rue to print British pounds, according to a Bank of England spokesman.