By October, up to 40% of UK E.On customers could be in fuel poverty after stark warnings from boss Michael Lewis. The energy firm has reached out to the UK government to step up its support for struggling homes due to the current energy crisis.
Currently, we are in unprecedented times according to the energy supplier, with increased numbers of customers going into arrears with their energy. As it stands, one in eight E.On customers are struggling to pay their bills.
If you add in the new energy price cap and colder winter months coming ahead, these numbers are expected to rise dramatically, forcing many households to make drastic decisions.
E.On aren’t the only energy firm that has expressed its concerns about the current crisis and asking for substantial interventions to be made by the government.
In recent weeks, Scottish Power boss, Keith Anderson issued a harsh warning that there could be millions of customers all across the UK facing a winter crisis unless there is an intervention.
With rising numbers of customers likely to be unable to pay their bills, it could result in even more energy suppliers collapsing, creating more panic and chaos in the energy market.
What Is Fuel Poverty?
Fuel poverty is described as households that have to spend 10% or more of their disposable income on energy.
There has never been a more important time for UK homeowners to understand how much energy they are using, as well as the best ways to reduce energy usage. Therefore, by using the simplest, free electricity usage calculator, anyone can see how much energy is being used, as well as if you can save money. No matter if you’re a homeowner or business owner, this tool is for you.
In April this year, the price cap was lifted by Ofgem, adding an additional £700 on top of the average household energy bill, with the total cost being £1,971. To combat this, there are calls for the government to levy a windfall tax on oil and gas firms.
What Is A Windfall Tax?
A windfall tax is a tax that is imposed by a government. It is a one-off tax that is placed on a single company or group of companies. The reason why there have been suggestions for a one-off tax in the energy industry is due to Shell and BP reporting huge profit increases while oil and gas prices skyrocket worldwide.
The idea of a windfall tax is to target specific companies that have been lucky to benefit from something they were not responsible for. Compared to last year, energy giants such as Shell and BP are earning much more money.
Multiple factors have led to these profits, such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, an increase in demand and the world emerging from the pandemic. Other nations such as Greece and Spain have already issued windfall taxes on energy companies.
Just this year, Shell has seen record £7bn profits, with BP making their highest profits for 10 years at £5bn.
Russian Giant Gazprom Considering UK Rebrand
The UK’s biggest energy provider of gas to companies is evaluating a change of name to distance the brand from Russia. After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the energy business, based in Manchester, have a task to decide on a new name.
Over 20% of the gas that is used by UK businesses comes from the firm and to increase its chance of survival, a subtle rebrand may be required. One of the names suggested is the name of its UK parent, GM&T.
Back in March, an imminent collapse was almost a certainty for Gazprom Energy, with companies turning away from new contracts. There were fears that there could be sharp price surges for the 30,000 corporate customers’ bills due to cheap contracts negotiated years before wholesale prices began to soar last summer.
With the business finding it increasingly difficult to find a buyer, the government had to step in, placing the firm into special administration that would allow the energy supplier to continue supplying its customers.
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Ministers in the UK believed there could have been a £4bn cost to taxpayers, with the combination of the special administration, as well as honouring customers’ low-cost contracts increasing the total costs.
However, the risks involved were massive, as by allowing the company to fail, it may have led to numerous other businesses going bust and creating more devastation to the energy market, in addition, to blame being placed on the government.
Meanwhile, over in Germany, Gazprom Germania, a trading, storage and transmission business was temporarily taken over by the German government and therefore secured its immediate future.
Until September 30th, the Federal Network Agency, Germany’s national energy regulator was made a trustee of the company. Effectively, this takeover ensures that Gazprom Energy’s future is in the hands of Berlin.
Berlin has denied Gazprom Energy from taking on new customers, resulting in many key staff members departing. Some from the Manchester office, home to around 270 employees have left, in addition to 15 staff recently leaving the business.
With different subsidiaries of Gazprom all doing different services around the globe, it is crucial to keep on top of the situation. For example, Gazprom Germania supplies wholesalers and retailers and is a vital component in the European energy market.
Some of the locations of subsidiaries include:
- The United Kingdom
- Mexico
- Switzerland
- Belgium
- Singapore
- Czech Republic
- Germany
Just this month there were amendments to key energy laws by the German parliament. Now, to secure energy supplies in the event of an emergency, the government has permission to seize ownership of energy companies.
£300m UK Limitless Energy project Backed By Jeff Bezos
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is backing a new £320million project to create limitless energy, with the UK playing a huge role in the process. The British fusion project will see nuclear physicists from the nation take centre stage.
The Culham Centre for Fusion Energy will be the location for the project, with Canadian private firm General Fusion – invested in by Jeff Bezos – leading the way. They were signals of a vote of confidence in Britain, with testing to be done here.
The Magnetised Target Fusion technology will be tested by General Fusion at the facility, aiming to use breakthrough processes to replicate the fusion processes used by stars.
But why the UK? Well, many have said it is due to England “still home to the best nuclear physicists in the world”. If there is anywhere in the world, fusion expert Richard Dinan, speaking to Science Digest stated that if ‘you want to find the best talent pool, it would be in England’.
The Culham Centre for Fusion Energy is a world-renowned facility where some of the best scientists in the world work. All European scientists working on ITER (the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) are based here.
In addition, the world record for fusion was set by UK based JET (the Joint European Torus). High praise must be given to the nation, with investing giants such as Jeff Bezos acknowledging that the UK is the best at the process.
This technology could see a surge in renewable technology being used in the UK. There is a huge race to become net-zero and the UK government is striving to reach targets by 2050. To play your part and find out which providers use renewable products by using this link, as well as save money you can use this list of energy suppliers.
With more and more renewable technologies being developed to help reduce climate change and become more energy-efficient, fusion has been labelled as the “holy grail” energy source. This process could create limitless power, all by harnessing the same power created by our Sun.
The founder of revolutionary company Pulsar Fusion, Mr Dinan is aiming to utilise this technology in space. The possibilities are exciting and endless, all here in our nation.
The size of the facility will be roughly 70% the size of a commercial reactor and could cost more than $400m. Plans are in place for the project to be officially operational by 2025.
The UK Atomic Energy Authority and General Fusion will agree to a long-term commercial lease that will aim to provide jobs to many in the green sector. Other projects in Europe are underway, such as the Iter project in the south of France.
However, delays on the Iter project have shown stark warnings that progress could be slow, especially due to current pandemic restrictions and other world events taking place. General Fusion’s effort is seen as one of the most advanced in the world, raising more than $100m in its last round of funding.