Do I really get "Green" energy?

frostiecuk

So I have just switched my supplier following the latest MSE newsletter about fixed costs, after having been on a variable for a number of months. Admittedly, I went via Top Cashback as the £50 was better than the £20 offered by MSE, but it got me thinking... Do I really get "green" energy?

My supplier gets its gas from grass, and (in simplified lamen terms), puts it in a pipe along with British Gas, Ocotpus etc who send it to my road. At this point we all tap into it, and use it as and when needed. So how do I know my consumption is green?

BarelySentientAI

As you've noticed - it isn't.

Consumption from either the electricity or gas grid just gets whatever mix happens to be there at the time.

The greenest suppliers are effectively just saying "we make sure as much green generation gets put in as our customers take out".

The less green ones say "we bought enough green certificates to cover what we supplied" - a much less strong message.

Netexporter

A long as suppliers aren't selling more green energy than is available, or off-setting non-green energy, then it can be called green. The "real green" suppliers only buy from green sources, with no off-setting, but you do pay a premium for that and they aren't subject to Ofgem price caps.

But electrons are electrons, and methane molecules are methane molecules, wherever they come from, so mixing them up makes no real difference.

frostiecuk

I thought as much. Just something I've never actually thought of after all these years 

For the record, I plumped for Ecotricity so I think its one of the greener ones out there 

Netexporter

Yes, Ecotricity and Good Energy are the only "true green" suppliers, as far as I know.

If you want to know where you electricity is coming from, in real time, this site is quite instructive:

https://www.gridwatch.templar.co.uk/

matelodave

Netexporter said:

Yes, Ecotricity and Good Energy are the only "true green" suppliers, as far as I know.

If you want to know where you electricity is coming from, in real time, this site is quite instructive:

https://www.gridwatch.templar.co.uk/

That makes the assumption that they supply to their customers the same or less energy than they generate.

However that wont always be the case and they'll have to supply energy from other sources if there's a shortfall in their generation capacity. As it all goes into the same grid then you don't really know where it comes from.

Dont forget that the sun doesn't always shine and the wind doesn't always blow so the shortfall has to be made up from fossil fuels, imports and nuclear

Apparently last year (2023) about 43% of our leccy came from "renewable" sources, but bear in mind some of that was also biomass which included millions of trees chopped and ground down and ferried across the Atlantic from the USA/Canada to be burned in the UK. Not sure if nuclear is included as well in that figure*.

Same as a bucket of water, half fill it from a tap and half from a mountain spring or river and then try to separate it out when you come to drink or wash with it.

In 2023, individual renewables contributed the following:

• Wind power contributed 29.4% of the UK’s total electricity generation.
• Biomass energy, the burning of renewable organic materials, contributed 5% to the renewable mix.
• Solar power contributed 4.9% to the renewable mix
• Hydropower, including tidal, contributed 1.8% to the renewable mix.

*note, doesn't include nuclear

FreeBear

frostiecuk said: My supplier gets its gas from grass, and (in simplified lamen terms), puts it in a pipe along with British Gas, Ocotpus etc who send it to my road. At this point we all tap into it, and use it as and when needed. So how do I know my consumption is green?

By doing a little research. Biogas from grass is far from "green" and releases a considerable amount of CO2 during manufacture and processing. Add to that the amount of energy & pollution to produce fertilizer to spread on the fields when growing the grass. So whilst Ecotricity's gas might have a shorter carbon cycle than fossil gas, it is misleading to call it green once you take in to account the total carbon footprint.

https://www.biofuelwatch.org.uk/docs/Ecotricity-briefing.pdf

Netexporter

I think "grass" may be doing some heavy lifting. It is usually maize that is used an a feedstock for anaerobic digestion. Growing maize, for energy or animal feed, causes huge damage to soil structure and increases run-off from fields, as the soil is left bare over the winter.

matelodave

FreeBear said:

frostiecuk said: My supplier gets its gas from grass, and (in simplified lamen terms), puts it in a pipe along with British Gas, Ocotpus etc who send it to my road. At this point we all tap into it, and use it as and when needed. So how do I know my consumption is green?

By doing a little research. Biogas from grass is far from "green" and releases a considerable amount of CO2 during manufacture and processing. Add to that the amount of energy & pollution to produce fertilizer to spread on the fields when growing the grass. So whilst Ecotricity's gas might have a shorter carbon cycle than fossil gas, it is misleading to call it green once you take in to account the total carbon footprint.

https://www.biofuelwatch.org.uk/docs/Ecotricity-briefing.pdf

you forgot all the machinery and lorries required to harvest and transport the grass to the biogas plant and the disposal of the waste - we live near one and there's a constant stream of lorries in and out.

The gas might be a bit greener but the production of it isn't and of course, planting stuff to produce biofuels or fields of solar panels (we've got lots of them as well) reduces the amount of space and increases the price for food production