British Gas owner buys £1.5bn gas terminal in big bet on fossil fuel reliance

Deal for Europe's biggest facility for LNG imports comes as overall UK gas demand fell sharply last year

The owner of British Gas has placed a 1.5bn bet on the UK's future reliance on fossil fuel imports after striking a deal to buy Europe's biggest gas import terminal.

Centrica plans to partner with a US private equity firm to acquire the Isle of Grain terminal in Kent, which can import 15m tonnes of liquefied natural gas a year, even after Britain's gas demand fell last year to its lowest level since the early 1990s.