It’s a well-known fact that energy is one of the hottest topics of discussion right now. Many politicians, business owners and industry analysts wonder about the future of the UK’s energy supply, whether renewable energy will become the norm and if the current trend of rising costs for gas and electricity will continue to prevail.
Businesses and households are among those affected most adversely by rising energy costs. Some of the UK’s biggest energy suppliers including Centrica, the owner of British Gas, have hiked their priced up astronomically, much to the dismay of their customers. It’s likely that prices may rise even higher in the next few years, but why?
Crumbling infrastructure
Any future energy price rises will be down to two factors: dwindling natural resources and the updating of energy supplies by moving to renewable technologies. The latter in particular is important, and many people are calling on the government to invest in new green technology to help meet the energy needs of business and domestic customers alike.
What stands in the way of large-scale investment is austerity. The coalition government are looking to reduce the growing levels of debt and are going down the cost-cutting path. However, some areas like defence are being ring-fenced from cuts, with this particular department receiving a £40bn subsidy, ten times that of the Department of Energy and Climate Change.
Not helping themselves
At the same time, many of the UK’s biggest energy suppliers are making significant profits, with Centrica being chief among them. They recently announced profits of £600m for British Gas and £2.7bn for the wider group. Much of those profits could be ploughed into renewable energy, but they seem to be putting shareholders first.
Flying the eco flag
To provide security for future years, the current and future governments should prioritise energy above all else, as it makes the country run. If it means slicing funding for defence, then so be it, as it’s what homes and businesses would like more.
