It's not often that the National Grid, who happen to amongst other things keep tabs on the gas industry makes headlines. The news that some of the UK's largest energy suppliers held back gas in storage tanks as the 'free market' ran into a serious if not acute gas shortage will not surprise many of the less than dispassionate observers of the expensive farce that passes itself off as the alleged energy 'free market' in the UK. Thanks to the failure to develop a sensible storage capacity of gas and the failure to develop serious serious alternative sustainable energy supplies the UK came within six hours of running out of gas on March 22nd this year.
National Grid, which leases out storage space in it's Isle of Grain Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminal, to Centrica (who own British Gas), BP and other large energy suppliers, noted that the terminal was 40% full on March 22nd. It also noted that the South Hook planet (here in Wales) was 52% full; at a time when a combination of pipelines problems and demand (due to the cold weather) led to a spike in gas prices (which reached 150 pence a therm). National Grid owns and operates the gas storage facility but leases out storage to a number of third party users (including Sonatrach (Algeria) and GDF (France). The implication is that these large energy suppliers were holding back stocks of gas during a time of crisis so that they could profit for the high price for gas.
If nothing else this should make it abundantly clear that the ideologically driven and pretty much unregulated 'free market' for energy has failed abysmally. We need, like Scotland and other countries to develop clean, safe and secure renewable energy supplies. I have come to the stark conclusion that the 'Big 6 energy cartel members have proved entirely focused on driving up profits and have neglected the safety of supply. They should play no part in developing, administering and overseeing any sustainable energy supplies as they will only endeavour to extract as much profit as they can from the process.
Showing posts with label retail gas prices. Show all posts
Showing posts with label retail gas prices. Show all posts
Monday, 27 May 2013
Wednesday, 27 February 2013
OUR POUNDS IN THEIR POCKETS...
News that British Gas profits have risen because a colder 2012 meant people used more gas won’t surprise many people, let alone British Gas customers. British Gas revealed that profits from the residential energy of £606 million pounds for 2012, up 11% from the previous year, gas consumption had been up 12%. Profits are up 16% to £312 million pounds at its residential services unit, which covers services such as repairing boilers. Centrica, British Gas’s parent company, has reported an adjusted operating profit of £2.7 billion for 2012, up 14% from 2011.
Lest we forget, this winter British Gas raised its gas and electricity prices by 6% in November 2012, as did all of the other big six energy cartel members. Ofgem (Energy regulator) provided details of the plan last week, which will also limit the number of tariffs that suppliers can offer and force them to make bills clearer. The energy cartel’s excessive winter profit taking even provoked the Prime Minister David Cameron to step in and state that he was going to force them to put customers on their cheapest tariffs.
While this was nice, but it was more about being seen to look good as the Conservative pre-election pledge for an independent inquiry into the £25 billion-a-year energy industry long subject to lengthy and repeated criticisms about accusations of profiteering on electricity and gas was quietly dropped in August 2010. The Conservatives have moved on from October 2009 when then Tory Energy Spokesman, Greg Clark (now Financial Secretary to the Treasury) said that the "cartel" of the big 6 energy firms would be referred to the Competition Commission by an incoming Conservative Government.
An 'independent' investigation into the Energy companies refusal to pass on reductions in wholesale energy prices to customers would have been nice as would the promised 'Energy Revolution' to overhaul the energy sector billing structure and charges. Then Tory Energy Spokesperson condemned the unacceptable lag between the cost of wholesale gas prices and household energy bills - noting that customers were on average being charged some £74 pound too much for their energy per year.
Oddly enough wholesale prices for domestic gas are currently lower than they were five years ago. At the moment it’s all about our pounds being in their pocket and maximising the cartel’s profits which coincidently boosts the Treasury’s tax revenues. Few of us this winter had as snug and toasty a relationship with the energy companies as that which exists between the political parties within the Westminster village (and without) and the energy supply companies.
Before the last Westminster general election, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats made repeated criticisms (and much political capital) from New Labour for its failure to tackle prices charged by the Big Six suppliers and repeatedly demanded an inquiry by the Competition Commission. Now the party formerly known as New Labour is busy trying to make political capital from the Con Dem’s failure to failure to tackle prices charged by the Big Six suppliers, something they conspicuously failed to do in the thirteen years they spent in office.
Lest we forget, this winter British Gas raised its gas and electricity prices by 6% in November 2012, as did all of the other big six energy cartel members. Ofgem (Energy regulator) provided details of the plan last week, which will also limit the number of tariffs that suppliers can offer and force them to make bills clearer. The energy cartel’s excessive winter profit taking even provoked the Prime Minister David Cameron to step in and state that he was going to force them to put customers on their cheapest tariffs.
While this was nice, but it was more about being seen to look good as the Conservative pre-election pledge for an independent inquiry into the £25 billion-a-year energy industry long subject to lengthy and repeated criticisms about accusations of profiteering on electricity and gas was quietly dropped in August 2010. The Conservatives have moved on from October 2009 when then Tory Energy Spokesman, Greg Clark (now Financial Secretary to the Treasury) said that the "cartel" of the big 6 energy firms would be referred to the Competition Commission by an incoming Conservative Government.
An 'independent' investigation into the Energy companies refusal to pass on reductions in wholesale energy prices to customers would have been nice as would the promised 'Energy Revolution' to overhaul the energy sector billing structure and charges. Then Tory Energy Spokesperson condemned the unacceptable lag between the cost of wholesale gas prices and household energy bills - noting that customers were on average being charged some £74 pound too much for their energy per year.
Oddly enough wholesale prices for domestic gas are currently lower than they were five years ago. At the moment it’s all about our pounds being in their pocket and maximising the cartel’s profits which coincidently boosts the Treasury’s tax revenues. Few of us this winter had as snug and toasty a relationship with the energy companies as that which exists between the political parties within the Westminster village (and without) and the energy supply companies.
Before the last Westminster general election, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats made repeated criticisms (and much political capital) from New Labour for its failure to tackle prices charged by the Big Six suppliers and repeatedly demanded an inquiry by the Competition Commission. Now the party formerly known as New Labour is busy trying to make political capital from the Con Dem’s failure to failure to tackle prices charged by the Big Six suppliers, something they conspicuously failed to do in the thirteen years they spent in office.
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