Power companies join 10:10 campaign
September 25, 2009 at 1:31 am
Four power companies have signed up to the 10:10 climate change campaign, showing that they are committed to reducing carbon emissions. E.ON, Scottish & Southern, EDF and Centrica have all signed up to the scheme, and organisers are hoping that this will make a real impact in the UK.
The campaign was launched recently with the aim of reducing carbon emissions by 10% during 2010. Celebrities, football clubs and universities have pledged their support, as well as more predictable candidates such as Friends of the Earth. But the addition of the power companies on the list is a real coup and suggests that they are really taking their responsibilities seriously.
The first to launch its agenda is E.ON, which has made it quite clear that it will be trying hard to get its customers to sign up to the 10:10 campaign. One way that it hopes to achieve this is to supply an online energy tracker for its customers. This will allow them to receive a monthly update on their energy use and indicate how close they are to achieving the goal of a 10% reduction in energy over the course of the year.
On top of that, E.ON is also going to give away 30,000 PowerDown devices. These devices automatically turn off appliances that have been left on standby which could dramatically reduce emissions. And large companies that sign up to 10:10 will also receive greater support from E.ON.
The campaign has been organised by the makers of the film ‘The Age of Stupid’ with the aim of helping people to do something about their energy use by setting a real and achievable goal.
£30 from British Gas for switching
September 18, 2009 at 2:59 am
Despite the recent criticisms of energy companies for not passing on the full savings they are making on wholesale fuel prices, there has been some good news for consumers as the fuel price war continues to intensify.
British Gas has now joined the race by offering customers a new, cheaper WebSaver 4 tariff to take over from the WebSaver 3 tariff. As well as the deal being cheaper, customers who purchase the tariff via switching site EnergyHelpline.com can now get £30 cashback on top.
The WebSaver 4 tariff is a dual-fuel deal which allows customers coming to the end of their capped-rate deals to find a new cheap tariff. The deal will work by giving customers £15 back for each type of fuel they order through EnergyHelpline.com. If customers sign up for both gas and electricity they will get £30. The WebSaver 4 tariff is a completely online tariff, so it is a totally paperless option. Customers can also pay by direct debit and get more discounts.
It’s only available for a limited period, and offers customers an average annual bill of £994. This is well below the national average of £1,262, but still doesn’t quite beat the £983 a year tariff from EDF. However, whereas the EDF deal is not available all over the country, British Gas has made its tariff available for all.
It all goes to show that it really does pay to shop around right now, especially with average bills so high. But EnergyHelpline.com has said of its tariffs that “some of the cheapest are now in short supply”, so you have to be quick to catch the best deals.
The only catch is that there is a cancellation charge of £30 for each fuel if the customer switches before March 2010.
Centrica snares Venture Production
September 14, 2009 at 2:56 pm
Centrica, the owner of British and Scottish Gas, has completed a hostile takeover of exploration firm, Venture Production, almost five months after the saga began.
Earlier this week, Venture’s majority shareholders, ArcLight, an American investment fund, and company founder, Larry Kinch, advised board members that they were in full support of the Centrica bid, despite the offer being some way below the original sale price of 1000p per share.
Mr. Kinch’s decision marked a major turnaround in shareholder opinion. For the past five months, Venture Production has resisted Centrica at every turn, referring the case to the European Commission (EC) earlier this week.
When the EC approved the takeover, Centrica began buying the floor out from beneath board members, acquiring 9.7% of Venture overnight. The company secured majority ownership (58%) on Monday evening, after investors offloaded a further 10% of Venture’s shares.
Centrica wants to be able to create its own energy supplies. In June, the British company was able to fashion 35% of its oil and gas stock from its own resources. The purchase of a British Energy share earlier in the month saw this figure rise to 45%.
Sam Laidlaw, CEO of Centrica, made clear his company’s plan to secure reliable gas supplies: “the deal sees us continuing our investment in the North Sea, further reducing our overall exposure to volatile movements in wholesale gas prices”
With Venture Production in its corner, Centrica would be one step closer to self-sufficiency, providing 60% of its own energy supplies.
Centrica has promised to protect Venture’s 156 employees, many of whom stand to make a small fortune from the takeover.
British Gas announces green skills centre
September 4, 2009 at 4:19 pm
The great push for greener energy across the UK has uncovered a problem that could soon become a serious issue: there are not enough skilled workers to fill the job vacancies, leading companies to look overseas for their staff instead.
But all that is about to change with the opening of the Green Skills Training Centre in Tredegar, South Wales. The project has been launched by British Gas in partnership with the Welsh Assembly Government, which is currently launching its £140 million regeneration programme. It is also supported by the local Jobcentre which is keen to see more jobs in the area.
The overall aim of the centre is to combat the serious lack of green skills in the industry. It’s no good having an energy revolution if there is no one available to fill the skills gap. The centre will be the first of its kind anywhere in the UK, and the aim is to train over 1,300 people a year. These positions will be filled by existing staff at British Gas, as well as a number of long-term unemployed in the Valleys area, which suffers from high levels of social deprivation.
The centre will focus on training staff in various green skills, including the installations of new renewably energy devices such as solar panels and wind turbines. The overall aim is that graduates of the scheme will then be able to provide 40,000 homes in South Wales with energy-efficiency makeovers, as is the Welsh Assembly’s ambition. This will lead to the largest low-carbon area in the whole of Europe.
Rhodri Morgan, the Welsh First Minister, said that the Low Carbon Zone had set “extremely ambitious targets”, with the plan being to “develop the highest concentration of renewable energy businesses in Europe”.
