Wednesday 10 December 2014
Green levies add £100 to energy bills
Householders have seen their energy bills rise by around £490 in the last decade, according to a new report.
That’s a 75% hike - from £650 in 2004 to £1,140 last year on average, the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) found.
The UK Government’s measures to support low carbon policies add around £100 a year on domestic energy bills, which includes support for energy efficiency and renewable schemes.
However, as a result of people installing measures such as new boilers, insulation and using more efficient electrical appliances, energy usage has fallen – which has led to savings of £165.
Lord Deben, Chairman of the CCC said: “Last year, as energy consumers we all helped hundreds of thousands of poorer people to have warmer homes and contributed to real reductions in our emissions in the fight against climate change - all for around £100 a year on the average bill. Many people saved more than that by taking simple energy saving measures that didn't interfere with their lifestyle.”
But bills are set to rise, the report said, with £55 more expected to be added by 2020 to support low carbon electricity and an extra £75 by 2030.
For commercial and industrial users, bills are likely to increase by around 9%-17% by 2020 and a further 12%-25% by 2030.
Gareth Stace, Head of climate and environment policy of the EEF manufacturers’ organisation said: “The report lays bare the potential impact of climate change policy on industrial energy prices, estimating that it could add 100% to electricity bills by 2030, which would place serious competitive pressures on heavy industry. It is vital that government starts to take a long term approach to minimising these costs for energy intensive industry.”
DECC said the report recognises that investing in energy efficiency measures is the best way to cut bills in the long term.
A spokesperson added: “Our policies are designed to keep the lights on, reduce polluting emissions and cut energy use at the lowest possible cost to gas and electricity customers.”
The report also noted carbon reductions as a result of climate change policies were the equivalent of taking around 10 million cars off the road.
