Energy news in general

MattMattMattUK

gt94sss2 said:

Eon Next have announced they are going to start migrating their customers meters to start reporting usage every 30 minutes from this Autumn.

https://news.eonenergy.com/news/no-half-measures-e-on-next-customers-among-first-to-see-benefits-of-half-hourly-meter-readings

Seems sensible, it was stupid that this was not just implemented from day one.

The_Green_Hornet

Source of Miliband's energy bill pledge casts doubt on savings

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband's promise to cut energy bills by £300 could be "wiped out" by rising electricity costs, according to the expert behind the savings estimate.

Miliband's pledge - which he has stood by in the face of fierce criticism from opponents who say it is unachievable - is based on a 2023 report, by energy think tank Ember.

But the author of the report, economist Pawel Czyzak, has told the BBC the analysis needs to be updated to take into account changes to the cost of offshore wind and other factors.

Source of Miliband's energy bill pledge casts doubt on savings - BBC News

MeteredOut

gt94sss2 said:

Eon Next have announced they are going to start migrating their customers meters to start reporting usage every 30 minutes from this Autumn.

https://news.eonenergy.com/news/no-half-measures-e-on-next-customers-among-first-to-see-benefits-of-half-hourly-meter-readings

I fully expect "THIS IS NOT A BENEFIT TO CUSTOMERS. THEY ARE GOING TO CHARGE US DIFFERENT RATES EVERY 30 MINUTES. ITS ALL A SCAM BY THE RIP-OFF ENERGY COMPANIES" posts on social media. Probably followed by a rant about ID cards.

Scot_39

The_Green_Hornet said:

Source of Miliband's energy bill pledge casts doubt on savings

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband's promise to cut energy bills by £300 could be "wiped out" by rising electricity costs, according to the expert behind the savings estimate.

Miliband's pledge - which he has stood by in the face of fierce criticism from opponents who say it is unachievable - is based on a 2023 report, by energy think tank Ember.

But the author of the report, economist Pawel Czyzak, has told the BBC the analysis needs to be updated to take into account changes to the cost of offshore wind and other factors.

Source of Miliband's energy bill pledge casts doubt on savings - BBC News

Anyone reading that report in light of other forecasts like NGESOs past on balancing and curtailment would have known its weaknesses.

Ever since  the lows of auction round 4 CfDs - with ar5 in Sep 2023 tge turning point from ar4 price lows - and remember its failure to secure any fixed offshore wind bidders.

Ae6 saw cfds for offshore far higher than ar4 - and higher than average gas rates  and yet Orsted still "abondoned" 2/3rds of new capacity by not proceding as planned with Hornsea 4 into an imbalanced uk generation system where potential supply far outweighs demand most of the year. 

Ar7 has increased the offshore cap aanother  iirc c10.3% to keep Milibands 95% by 2030 dream alive .  Let's see if the rates follow (or as some in industry press expect run closer to that cap in light of Hornsea 4)  so actually increase costs by even more.

JKenH

The Tony Blair Institute states that policy costs on UK household electricity bills have surpassed the cost of actual electricity, averaging £334 annually compared to £324 for electricity. These policy costs, used to fund things like renewable energy subsidies, have more than doubled in real terms since 2015. The institute is now calling for a review of the government's 2030 clean power targets, arguing that focusing on least-cost pathways to a low-carbon system could help lower bills.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/gift/cd4957dd3294d8d3

GingerTim

Wood burners linked to 2,500 deaths a year in the UK, analysis finds

The burning of wood and coal in homes contributes to almost 2,500 deaths a year in the UK, analysis has found. Stopping unnecessary burning would save the NHS more than £54m a year, the experts concluded.

Wood-burning stoves and open fires are one the biggest sources of small pollution particles, which cause heart and lung disease, and their use has risen in recent years. The report also links this toxic air pollution to 3,700 cases of diabetes and 1,500 cases of asthma a year, although the health impacts are likely to be underestimated.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/23/wood-burners-linked-to-2500-deaths-a-year-in-the-uk-analysis-finds

JKenH

According to the Tony Blair Institute:

Between 1990 and 2023, carbon emissions from electricity generation fell by 78.4 per cent.

 This single sectoral shift has been central to the UK’s broader success in halving national greenhouse-gas emissions since 1990, reinforcing its reputation as a global leader in decarbonisation.

But the way this transition has been delivered – including market design, policy sequencing and infrastructure lag – has contributed to a steady rise in electricity prices.

In 1990, domestic electricity prices in the UK were just 10 per cent above the International Energy Agency (IEA) median and among the most affordable in the G7. By 2005, they had crept up to 17 per cent above the IEA median. By 2020 – well before the gas crisis – they had more than doubled, standing more than 40 per cent above the IEA median. This trend shows that the UK’s relative decline in affordability pre-dated the spike of 2022–23, when prices surged to 64 per cent above the IEA median and the highest in the G7.

 Including taxes – what consumers actually feel – the story is similar: starting at the IEA median in 1990, consumer prices in the UK jumped to 43 per cent above median by 2020 and then skyrocketed to 80 per cent above the median in 2023.

https://institute.global/insights/climate-and-energy/cheaper-power-2030-net-zero-2050-resetting-UK-electricity-strategy

JKenH

Meanwhile, UK domestic gas customers enjoy rates among the lowest in Europe.



https://institute.global/insights/climate-and-energy/cheaper-power-2030-net-zero-2050-resetting-UK-electricity-strategy

JKenH

GingerTim said:

Wood burners linked to 2,500 deaths a year in the UK, analysis finds

The burning of wood and coal in homes contributes to almost 2,500 deaths a year in the UK, analysis has found. Stopping unnecessary burning would save the NHS more than £54m a year, the experts concluded.

Wood-burning stoves and open fires are one the biggest sources of small pollution particles, which cause heart and lung disease, and their use has risen in recent years. The report also links this toxic air pollution to 3,700 cases of diabetes and 1,500 cases of asthma a year, although the health impacts are likely to be underestimated.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/23/wood-burners-linked-to-2500-deaths-a-year-in-the-uk-analysis-finds

And so does cooking with gas 

On average, researchers determined, gas stoves shorten lifespans by nearly two years, leading to 36,031 early deaths across the EU and 3,928 early deaths in the U.K. each year.

https://e360.yale.edu/digest/europe-gas-stoves-mortality

Chrysalis

Ildhund said:

Chrysalis said:
Some serious issues in the market.  

I wonder where the figures in the graphic came from. The serious issues may lie with whoever spun them out of Ofgem's published data.

Chrysalis said:
Move policy costs to general taxation, where it should be, ...

I've said this before, but I make no apologies for saying it again. As far as the domestic energy market is concerned, there are only minor differences between the cohort of those who pay standing charges for electricity and that of those who pay tax (one important one is that standing charges are levied per household, while income tax is per person). Piling 'policy' costs on to the standing charge is a simple way for government to increase revenue without increasing taxes.  

Well yeah , to be fair I made my comment assuming there is accuracy in those figures, obviously moot if they fiction.  I do put an element of trust in posts when I can.