Energy Policy
Legend has it that when a great fire broke out in Rome in 64 AD, Emperor Nero played music (unlikely to be an actual fiddle since those were not invented until the 11th century). The moral of the story is that Nero was both [...]
Today Ofgem has written to suppliers to outline its response to current market conditions. It is difficult not to conclude that the regulator is inhabiting some strange alternative reality in which the usual rules of economics don’t apply – its proposals to consult on [...]
The failure of GoTo Energy on 18 October brought the total number of supplier failures this year to 16, with 14 since August. Questions are increasingly being asked of Ofgem’s handling of the crisis, with many accusing the regulator of being asleep at the [...]
Last week the Government published its Net Zero strategy, building on last year’s 10-point plan, with some laudable aims to make the UK a world-leader in the “Green Industrial Revolution”. But, as always, the devil is in the detail, and in this respect the [...]
Life continues to be difficult for energy suppliers. This week Omni Energy informed its customers that it expects to cease trading by the end of November, and is encouraging its customers to switch before it closes and a Supplier of Last Resort (SOLR) is [...]
The energy market crisis is suddenly big news. It is impossible to open a newspaper or turn on the television or radio without hearing stories of rising bills and supplier bankruptcies. Energy is no longer a footnote in the business pages, with some outlets [...]
Today the Business Secretary, Kwasi Kwarteng, has raised the prospect of nationalising parts of the electricity industry. Of course, it isn’t couched in those terms, but the Government has announced that it will appoint a Special Administrator to run any supplier that fails if [...]
In the year and a half from the beginning of 2020 to July 2021 UK power day-ahead prices effectively doubled, and everyone from suppliers, three of whom have closed in recent weeks, and another two today: Utility Point and People’s Energy, to end consumers [...]
This week the National Audit Office (“NAO”) has published a damning report into the Government’s failed Green Homes Grant Voucher Scheme. The scheme was originally announced in July 2020, as part of the UK’s “green recovery” from the pandemic, with £1.5 billion funding being [...]
Last week I was invited to speak at the Westminster Energy, Environment & Transport Forum on the subject of smart energy markets. The transcript of my speech is below: Developing smart energy markets for suppliers and consumers - modernising entry rules, delivering smart [...]