Energy Cost Worries for 1st Time Buyers
February 22, 2006 at 2:17 pm
It seems it is not just the price of the property that those wishing to get on the property ladder are having to worry about. How energy efficient the property is, therefore how huge their bills will be is also a concern.
According to Yorkshire bank, first time buyers are becoming increasingly aware of a houses energy efficiency and are not willing to throw money away on a property without proper insulation or no double glazing.
Will energy bills constantly on the rise, this is not surprising. Watchdog Energywatch has reported a huge 40% rise in gas bills and a not much better 30% rise for electricity costs, and this is without taking British Gas’ possible 25% rises into account. Average energy bills are set to reach a staggering £1000 a year for the first time so finding ways to be energy efficient has never been more important.
New Nuclear Plants in Britain?
February 22, 2006 at 2:33 am
Possible new nuclear plants for Britian have been informally discussed between EDF Energy, British Energy, German’s RWE and E.ON.
New nuclear plants in Britian are one of the possible solutions to the future energy situation being discussed within the energy review. At the moment nuclear energy supplies 25% of our electricity and with old plants being closed down, there will be only one in operation by 2023 if no new plants are built.
Micro-generation – A solution to our energy crisis?
February 16, 2006 at 5:32 pm
Micro-generation is small scale, home based renewable energy generation, for example solar or wind power. This type of energy generation could help lessen carbon emissions, ensure that we always have a reliable energy supply and make us less dependant on energy imports.
So what is holding us back? Well, micro-generation comes with relatively high set up costs but those who are already generating their own electricity will benefit from savings on future energy costs as well as lessening environmental damage. There are already several popular wind and solar technologies available to the public and with government partnerships, many more households could be provided with the equipment needed.
Widespread uptake of micro-generation could help the government meet its energy policy targets and make a significant contribution to energy needs. It is also a great way to get individuals involved directly in contributing to the energy supply of their own neighbourhood.
The Energy Saving Trust have commented that that by 2050, microgeneration could be providing between 30 to 40 per cent of our total electricity needs.
Garden Centre to build their own Wind Turbines
February 11, 2006 at 5:32 pm
A garden centre near Carlisle plans to build 5 wind turbines to produce their own electricity and slash their heating costs for their greenhouses.
The turbines (awaiting planning permission) will span 192,000 square feet and will include two 50ft and three 30ft turbines. They have not received much oppostion from anti wind farm campaigners as they will not impose too much on the local landscape because of their size. It is hoped that the turbines should pay for themselves within 5 years and cut the garden centre’s huge �15,000 a year heating costs.
Solar panels are also planned to supplement the electricty supply. This energy will be used by themselves, by other nearby businesses and any excess could be sold to the National Grid.
New Electricty Companies can’t Cope with Price Rises
February 6, 2006 at 5:32 pm
Zest4 Electricity, Utility Link, Eledor, Reepham and the Team Group of Companies have had to pull out of the electricity market as they cannot afford wholesale gas prices (also used to power electricty stations) which continue to rise.
After setting fixed prices to their customers and then being faced with soaring wholesale prices the companies collapsed. Their customers who were expecting guaranteed lower bills will now be facing energy bill increases as Ofgem’s policy automatically switches them over to a new supplier – usually one of the six major suppliers.
Although customers are free to switch their supplier at any time, they have no choice with this initial decision of which company they are switched to and it seems that no automatic compensation is available.
Huddersfield is ahead with Solar Power
February 1, 2006 at 5:32 pm
Kirklees in Huddersfield is producing the most solar energy in the UK. A project started in 2001 in partnership with Heerhugowaard in Holland and Munich in Germany has been a great success and seen over 500 households with solar panels on their roofs producing 5% of UK’s solar energy.
The panels are powered by daylight so it doesn’t matter that we are not always flooded with sunshine. The governement funded project is saving residents in council properties, varoius redidential properties and care homes approximately �50 a year on electricity bills.
The project in Kirklees has come out on top, with the energy chiefs from Germany and Holland suitably impressed with the results. It is due to end in March but with obvious economical and environmental benefits, those working on the project believe that similar developments will start around the country in the near future.
