THE National Grid cancelled a request to fire up two old coal power stations that it had put on standby today in case energy supplies were disrupted amid freezing temperatures. 

Earlier in the day, the company had asked Drax to start preparing two coal-fired units, expecting that the plants would be ready to operate between 5pm and 9pm, when demand is high. 

However, the plants at the Drax site near Selby, North Yorkshire, were later stood down by the Electricity System Operator, an arm of the National Grid.