‘Irony’ of latest 2 per cent increase in energy bills

It’s ironic that one factor in the latest 2 per cent increase in household energy bills is the rising cost off switching off green energy wind farms.

That’s the view of Midlands green energy expert Ron Fox, who was commenting on the surprise higher bills that will hit consumers from this October, taking a typical annual bill to £1,755, up £35 a year on the current cap.

It couldn’t come at a worse time for residents who are already having to deal with inflation remaining stubbornly high and possible tax increases in next month’s budget, as well as having to use more energy as winter looms.

“Almost a year ago, the Labour government promised to slash energy bills by £300 by the end of the decade,” said Ron. “That target seems even further away today.”

Ofgem, the energy regulator, said that the bigger-than-expected rise in the price cap for the final three months of the year was “driven by an increase in electricity balancing costs”, accounting for £15 of that total.

These are costs levied on consumers by the National Energy System Operator to fund its work of keeping Britain’s lights on by balancing supply and demand in real-time.

Ofgem confirmed that this included a rising bill for paying wind farms in remote locations to switch off because the cabling and pylon network cannot take their power to where it is needed. Also, it meant paying other generators like gas plants closer to consumers to fire up to replace the energy lost.

Costs arising from wind farm curtailment and replacement have risen to £814 million so far this year, from £631 million at the same point in 2024, according to Wasted Wind, a tracker run by Octopus Energy.

The regulator said that a further £17 a year of the increase to the energy price cap reflected a higher levy on all households to fund the expansion of the government’s Warm Home Discount scheme, which will help a further 2.7 million of the most vulnerable households with discounts of £150 a year. More than 6 million households are now eligible for the scheme, following the expansion announced earlier this year.

“I find this decision staggering when the Government is trying to encourage people to move over to green energy,” said Ron, of Noreus Ltd on the University of Keele Science and Innovation Park.

Ofgem’s cap sets the maximum price that can be charged for each unit of gas and electricity for millions of households in England, Scotland and Wales and the change comes into force at the start of October and lasts for three months.

Individual households can calculate their estimated specific change by adding £2 onto every £100 they spend at the moment on energy each year.

The cap sets the price for each unit, but not the total bill which depends on how much energy householders use.

“It is unbelievable that the British public are being denied cheap energy because it cannot be transported to homes. Yet our country is a world leader in generating offshore wind,” said Ron.

“The result is that millions of pounds are being wasted paying wind providers who are not actually supplying electricity.”

He concluded: “We need a modern grid as a matter of urgency to cope with green energy. Telling the public the pylons and cables are in the wrong places is cold comfort for a public facing ever-increasing energy costs this winter.”

For those wanting more advice about reducing their energy bills, call Ron on 0845 474 6641 or contact us here.

Next week: Ron gives advice on how householders can reduce their energy costs.

Caption: Telling the public the pylons are in the wrong places is cold comfort for a public facing ever-increasing energy costs this winter, said Ron.