December 15, 2011
U.K.
U.K.
Green energy ‘will only add £100 to bills’
By Rowena Mason, Political Correspondent, The Telegraph, www.telegraph.co.uk 15 December 2011
By Rowena Mason, Political Correspondent, The Telegraph, www.telegraph.co.uk 15 December 2011
New wind farms and nuclear power will only add £100 per year to energy bills by the end of the decade, according to the Government’s climate advisers.
David Kennedy, chief executive of the Committee on Climate Change, called for an end to “alarmism” over the cost of green energy.
He said it was possible that bills might not rise at all by 2020, if the Government makes a push to reduce each home’s energy use.
Overall, bills are likely to increase by around £200, with about half of this rise cause by the UK’s climate change policies.
The committee said higher gas prices are “by far” the largest cause of soaring energy bills since 2004. Only £75 per year out of an estimated £290 is due to green policies, it said.
It predicted the “typical” household would see bills rise from £1,060 last year to £1,250 in 2020 if there is “limited” success in getting households to use less energy.
The average bill has already rocketed over £1,300 per household this year, but the committee used a different measure of the “typical” household.
The biggest contributor to the rise was wholesale gas prices, which added around £290 to bills, with around £75 due to policies that reduce carbon emissions.
Sir David said: “”Energy bills are high but the reason is not low carbon, it is because of changes in the gas price which have fed through to energy bills in our homes.”
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2011/12/15/green-energy-will-only-add-100-to-bills/