Government launches boiler scrappage scheme
January 29, 2010 at 4:04 am
Those in England whose homes are fitted with inefficient, G-rated boilers will now be able to apply for a £400 voucher from the Energy Saving Trust to go towards replacing them with A-rated boilers. Moreover, energy companies British Gas and npower are saying that they will match the offer, totalling a saving of £800.
The Department for Energy and Climate Change says that the £50m scheme, which was announced in the Pre-Budget Report, could slash the average energy bill by up to £235 annually.
It is also said that the scheme will help to lower significantly England’s CO2 emissions. According to Chancellor Alistair Darling, homes produce a quarter of the country’s emissions.
Up to 125,000 homeowners can apply for the vouchers. They will probably be heavily oversubscribed though, as it is thought that a massive three and a half million homes have G-rated boilers.
The Energy Saving Trust states that your gas boiler is likely to be eligible if it has a permanent pilot light (a small gas flame used to ignite larger burners). Another indication is if it is over 15 years old. If you have an oil-fired boiler, on the other hand, it needs to be over 25 years old. You can check your eligibility on the Government Boiler Efficiency Database.
If your boiler qualifies, you should first contact an installer to get a quote. An average installation will cost around £2,500, so make sure you shop around for the best deal. It is also worth noting that the £400 can only be paid after the work has been completed, meaning that you have to pay for your boiler and installation upfront before claiming back your money.
Find out more at the Energy Saving Trust website. If you are keen, apply sooner rather than later. The vouchers will be issued from 18 January onwards.
Norway gas ‘not arriving’
January 22, 2010 at 4:22 pm
The National Grid has pleaded with Norway to send more gas, after the recent cold snap forced the closure of a major gas processing plant on the Ormen Lange gas field, one of the largest natural fuel reserves in Northern Europe.
Located close to the town of Kristiansund, Norway, Ormen Lange is responsible for a good chunk of the UK’s gas, some 39 cubic metres. The fuel is pumped across Northern Europe and under the North Sea to England.
Of course, when supplies failed to arrive on Monday morning, the National Gird and the Conservatives started to panic. Factories (including a major Vauxhall plant and a British Sugar site) had their gas cut off, and a ‘gas-balancing’ alert was sounded, encouraging consumers to conserve existing reserves.
Despite all the yelling, the true nature of Britain’s gas problem refuses to reveal itself – the Labour Party tried to defuse the issue by going to war against the Conservatives, accusing the Shadow Energy Secretary of “scaremongering,” whilst the tabloids declared the apocalypse in a few lines of type.
In the end, Russia bunged the void in British gas supplies by diverting some of its own reserves to the Orman Lange system. But the question still remains – is the UK still balancing atop a gas-less oblivion?
Reports contradict, but there is no denying that Britain has meagre gas reserves, even four days after Ormen Lange was reopened. The country is capable of stockpiling a maximum of 16 days worth of gas, which means that current reserves are likely to be in single digits.
British Gas to enter insurance market
January 15, 2010 at 2:36 am
British Gas may not be associated with insurance in most people’s minds, but it has just announced that it wants to become one of the biggest insurance companies in the UK.
British Gas has previously offered insurance to its customers through other underwriters. But now the FSA (Financial Services Authority) has granted the power company approval to underwrite its own products.
Its aims are quite ambitious. In an advert on its website it is trying to recruit a new team that will help to convert a “high percentage” of its 4.5 million customers to its insurance products. It also claims that it wants to be one of the biggest insurers in the UK as early as 2011.
The products for which British Gas will be providing insurance include central heating systems, plumbing, boilers and general household electrics. It is easy to see how the company could become a successful insurer. A large proportion of its huge customer base would be likely to take out insurance with the company simply because of the convenience of such an arrangement.
A spokesperson for the company said that its insurance would allow it to provide “greater flexibility in how we can help our customers look after the energy needs of their homes.”
However, in order to reach its goal of breaking into the top 10, British Gas has quite a task ahead. According to The Telegraph, to make it past Allianz Insurance, which is number 10 on the list of the top 100 insurers in trade magazine ‘Post’, British Gas would have to raise £1.5 billion in premiums.
Gas running out as cold spell continues
January 8, 2010 at 1:55 pm
Arctic conditions have hit the UK and shops and supermarkets are reporting panic buying amongst customers worried that the stores are going to run out of everything from fresh food to anti-freeze and winter woollies. Perhaps an even greater worry, however, is that we may be going to run out of gas.
Yesterday, as forecasters predicted that this January could be the coldest since records began, the National Grid warned that demand for gas was likely to outstrip supply if businesses did not reduce their consumption and if supplies were not obtained from abroad. This is only the second time ever that such a warning has been made.
The situation was made worse by the return to work after the Christmas and New Year break and fears arose that businesses and homes would be facing power cuts if the freezing temperatures continue.
The warning also had the effect of making wholesale gas prices soar by 70% (from 35p to 60p per therm). A spokesman for energy analysts, Inenco, said that Britain could be held to ransom over prices and criticised the lack of investment in storage plants. Britain only has the capability to store 15 days worth of gas so in times of high demand the country relies on imported gas from mainland Europe, the Far East and the Caribbean.
A National Grid spokesman said that these imports were designed to deal with crises such as this and was confident that domestic supplies would be unaffected. A spokesman for Energy UK also said that consumers had nothing to worry about and that energy companies buy in advance for this very reason.
The bad news is that predictions are being made for the icy spell to last another three weeks, with overnight temperatures likely to be around -14 in parts of Scotland. The sea may well freeze over in sheltered areas as happened in the winter of 1962-63 due to continued low temperatures and chaos is expected to continue on the roads and at airports.
