The striking French workers forced Britain to launch a backup power plan

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The units, in Nottinghamshire and North Yorkshire, were due to close in September 2022, but ministers have asked them to stay open this winter.

The move came amid fears of gas shortages due to Russia’s war on Ukraine, as well as the outage of the French nuclear fleet.

Under the emergency arrangements, the national grid is able to use the units to back up supplies in neighboring countries if the neighboring country’s supplies are deemed to be at risk.

Many workers in France started strike protests this month to demonstrate against President Emmanuel Macron’s government’s plans to overhaul the country’s pension system, which would raise the retirement age by two years to 64.

No interruptions in the hydroelectric power supply have been reported in France.

Outside the electricity sector, oil and gas giant Total Energy said strikes had halted shipments at several production sites in France.

The company said shipments had been banned in La Midi, Donges, Normandy and Dunkirk, but it continued to make sure petrol stations were supplied. It added that its refineries in Vizin were not affected.

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