Posts in category: Energy News

UK Energy Ministry BEIS has confirmed it will pull the plug on supports for renewable energy developments that fail to live up to commitments made in their supply chain plans at future CfD auction rounds.

The move is a sweeping reform to a long-standing process that requires every developer chasing subsidy support for a project of 300MW or above to provide BEIS with plans outlining how developers will build the projects.

The changes are being sought to incentivise more local content, especially from offshore wind where the government is chasing a sector deal target of 60% local content by 2030.

BEIS said it will introduce a new ‘operational condition precedent’ allowing the government to terminate CfDs for projects which fail to follow through with promises made in plans.

As part of the changes, the review of each developer’s delivery of its plans will now be brought forward to the milestone delivery date, which is 18 months after contract award.

Projects were previously assessed for supply chain compliance at commissioning.

At this stage developers will need to provide ‘supply chain implementation statements’ which must be certified before power payments can commence.

Vattenfall UK country manager Danielle Lane said the earlier assessment date is “a positive step” that will help manage the threat CfD removal poses to multi-billion-pound projects.

“The changes make it more likely that investment decisions can be taken to keep projects on track to deliver significant amounts of renewables capacity by the mid-2020s,” she said.

Lane however warned the threat of removing CfD backing from failing projects may lead to adverse effects.

“The prospect of losing a Contract for Difference at MDD stage is still a significant investment risk however, and as such it is vital that a clear and transparent supply chain assessment process is put in place,” she said.

“Our priority is to deliver the best-value projects for bill payers, as well as supporting the growth of the UK supply chain.”

BEIS said the changes are being implemented following consultation with developers, renewables associations and trade unions.

The ministry is currently evaluating responses from a separate consultation over the introduction of a so-called ‘supply chain plan questionnaire’ for developers and will outline more detail on this shortly.

RenewableUK deputy chief executive Melanie Onn said: “The latest supply chain proposals set challenging new demands for project developers, so it’s vital that the guidance is clear on how we can demonstrate the contribution we’re making by creating thousands of jobs, developing skills and fostering innovation across the supply chain, as well as building vital new infrastructure.

“Project developers are already working with manufacturers to help them understand our projects’ needs and timelines, which will support investment in new facilities and the development of new skills in our workforce.

“Underpinning all this, we need large volumes of new capacity in the next CfD auction for new contracts to generate clean power to keep us on track for our 2030 target, quadrupling what we’ve already installed.”

I’m having issues with Symbio Energy – what can I do?

While Symbio Energy is one of the cheapest electricity-only suppliers on typical use, if you’re unhappy you can always switch supplier. You may end up paying a bit more, but it could be worth it if customer service is important to you – see our Cheap Energy Club to do a full market comparison. Just remember to factor any exit fees into your comparison if you’re on a fixed deal. If you do switch, any credit Symbio Energy owes you would still be paid, and if you owe the firm you’ll still need to pay any outstanding balance.

Under Ofgem’s licensing conditions – specifically condition 21B of the electricity supply licence, which all suppliers must follow – if you provide a meter reading, Symbio “must take all reasonable steps to reflect the meter reading in the next bill or statement of account sent to the customer”.

If you don’t feel that is being adhered to, or if you’re generally unhappy with the service you’re getting from Symbio, here’s how to complain:

• First, contact the supplier. In the first instance, it’s always best to try getting in contact to see if it can sort the issue before you go down the official complaints route. You can contact Symbio on 0333 050 9372 or email it.
• Then raise an official complaint. If you can’t get an answer or don’t feel that your issue has been dealt with properly by the firm, you can lodge a formal complaint directly with the supplier, or use the free Resolver tool, which can help manage your complaint.
• Finally, complain to the ombudsman. If you’re unhappy with the resolution, or you don’t hear anything for eight weeks, you can refer your complaint to the Energy Ombudsman, an independent body that handles disputes between consumers and energy firms.

What does Symbio Energy say?

A Symbio Energy spokesperson initially told us it is company policy not to respond to Trustpilot reviews. But after we challenged this, it backtracked and said the links it included in its responses “are to remind parties that if they wish to leave a comment it must be true and stand a judicial test for veracity”.

It claimed it was the victim of “corporate cyberbullying” and that many of the reviews weren’t from genuine customers, which it has reported to Trustpilot.

A Symbio spokesperson said: “The amount of calls we receive where customers seek to leverage bills, discounts and evade liabilities by threatening poor reviews or complaints [sic]. There is a published complaints route for [complaints, such as] the ombudsmans, litigation and [energy regulator] Ofgem. Cyber trolling is not in our opinion a socially acceptable route.”

On its service issues, a spokesperson said: “We have a back office in Goa, India, and due to the pandemic issues in India there have been operational issues resulting from curfews and lockdowns.

“We are undergoing a massive recruitment programme to increase our staff ratios as well. However, I suspect in the absence of a forum to vent displeasure, customers who have outstanding debt and ongoing litigation will seek to complain, as is their right.”

On the estimated billing issues, one of the most common complaints over recent months, Symbio says it follows “an advance billing system wherein we bill you one month in advance based on your estimated annual consumption. Upon receiving your meter reading at the end of each month, we reconcile the bill according to the meter reading submitted.”

What does Ofgem say?

An Ofgem spokesperson said: “We routinely engage with suppliers to secure compliance with their regulatory obligations, but we do not normally comment on the specifics of any such engagement.”

Source: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/2021/05/Symbio-rapped-over-response-to-negative-reviews/

In August 2018 we set out our expectation that we would need to introduce half-hourly settlement (HHS) on a market-wide basis in order to realise the full benefits of settlement reform. Our Outline Business Case document suggested that – due to the magnitude of the potential net benefits – our decision should centre on determining when and how, rather than whether, market-wide settlement reform should be introduced.

After carrying out a Request for Information (RFI), on 30 April 2020 we published (initially for information) a consultation on issues relating to the introduction of market-wide half-hourly settlement (MHHS) across the electricity retail market. On 17 June 2020 we opened the consultation period. Accompanying the consultation document was a draft impact assessment (IA) on the introduction of MHHS and a paper on the potential consumer impact of MHHS. The consultation closed on 14 September 2020. After the consultation closed we considered the responses carefully and continued to engage with a wide range of stakeholders as we refined our proposals.

We are now publishing our decision to proceed with MHHS based on the Design Working Group’s Target Operating Model (the DWG’s TOM), for import-and export-related Meter Point Administration Numbers (MPANs), with a transition period of 4 years and 6 months completing in October 2025. MHHS will place the right incentives on retailers to develop and offer new tariffs and innovations that encourage and enable more flexible use of energy, such as time of use tariffs, automation, vehicle to grid solutions and battery storage. We estimate that our chosen option for MHHS will deliver net benefits to GB energy consumers in the range of £1,559m-£4,509m over the period 2021-2045. We have published the following:

• our Decision Document, which sets out all the decisions that we have taken and the reasons for them,
• our Full Business Case (FBC), which includes an assessment of the economic case for implementing MHHS and provides updates on how MHHS will be implemented,
• our Final Impact Assessment (IA), which sets out our analysis of the costs and benefits of MHHS, and
• a short addendum to our Data Protection Impact Assessment, to reflect the new data access policy decisions set out in the Decision Document.

We would like to thank all stakeholders for your input so far. We look forward to your continued engagement during the implementation phase of settlement reform.

It passed by as quietly as an electric car — so much so we almost missed it — and neither did green energy pioneer Ecotricity make a noise about its ongoing growth during its last financial year either.

Surprising, possibly, given that the Stroud-headquartered green energy pioneer and owner of the UK’s first electric car charging network is not known to be shy of the spotlight.

Ecotricity’s turnover grew by 15 per cent to £222.3 million, with its annual report stating this was due in no small part to its customer retention but also a growth in business customers.

‘2020 has been a year of significant growth in turnover for the renewable energy company. During 2020 turnover grew by 15 per cent to £222,312,555 (2019: £193,339,518),’ said Asif Rehmanwala, Ecotricity’s chief executive officer and the man who signed its annual report for the year ending 30 April 2020.

All of which marked another consecutive year of turnover growth for the business, which this year is also a sponsor of the SoGlos Gloucestershire Business Awards – lending its weight to the Green Business of the Year category.

‘In aggregate business and domestic numbers remained steady year-on-year (2019: grew 1.4 per cent). Maintaining customer numbers has been a success in an extremely price competitive market.

‘This has been achieved by the supply business remaining true to its values as a ‘deep green’ energy supplier rather than competing on price.’

In fact, business customer supplies (gas and electric combined) grew year on year by 31 per cent to 868 GWh.

‘This growth was primarily due to increased sales focus on higher consumption business customers.

‘Business customer numbers grew by 48 per cent (2019: 19 per cent increase) in the year.’

The number of domestic customers remained static.

Gross profits decreased by 19.7 per cent to £28.8 million (2019: £35.9m).

The Five Valleys’ firm put this down to the change in customer mix and an ‘increase in costs associated with ensuring that the company’s customers are provided with deep green energy’.

Pre-tax losses were £6.6m, although it declared its financial position ‘remains strong’ with net assets at £14.8m and that 2020 showed a ‘good underlying trading performance’.

‘Despite a drop in gross and net profits margins, it has built a good platform against which to pursue further cost control, standing the company in a strong position for the year to come.’

The report also looked beyond the period to the end of April last year into the first half of the current financial year, stating its priority had been the safety and welfare of its staff and customers.

Despite which, ‘the company’s operating business has deteriorated only ‘slightly’ due to the covid-19 pandemic.

It is part of a shake-up of the efficiency grading system by the Government for new products such as fridges, washing machines and TVs. It involves new energy labels stuck on the side of ‘white goods’ that must adhere to tougher energy efficiency standards than were previously demanded.

The old labelling system, which ranked goods from a lowly ‘D-‘ to a top rated ‘A+++’, had been criticised for lulling consumers into thinking that products were more efficient than they really were.

The new system now ranks goods as low as ‘G’ but only as high as ‘A’. Many shoppers may be confused at first as the new grading still uses many of the same letters. But the appliances that were previously being sold with ‘A’ or ‘B’ grade could now only be rated a ‘C’ or below.

Dee Fernandes, of the Association of Manufacturers of Domestic Appliances, says: ‘These energy ratings are starkly different from what were being used before.

‘It leaves more room for improvement at the top end of the scale to encourage manufacturers to make more efficient products that will save customers money.

‘The grades are not just for measuring energy efficiency but whether goods offer eco-modes and replacement parts are easy to buy if you want to repair them. Initially you might find that most goods are rarely ranked much above ‘C’.’

Britain will be left with just one coal-burning power station by the end of next year – bringing the country closer to its goal of ending use of the fossil fuel in electricity generation by 2024.

French energy company EDFplans on Monday to close its coal power plant in Nottinghamshire, which is called West Burton A, by September next year.

This will leave a second Nottinghamshire plant owned by the German energy company Uniper as the only station still burning coal for power in Britain by the end of 2022.

Matt Sykes, EDF’s managing director for the generation business, said in a statement: “West Burton A and its loyal workforce have played a critical role providing power to the UK for 55 years, including during this recent winter. Since 1966, the station has produced enough electricity to meet the needs of all UK households for more than four years, a truly incredible achievement.

“With EDF’s power generation strategy firmly focused on nuclear and renewables – and in this key year for UK leadership on climate change – we now believe it is the right time to provide clarity to our employees and all those connected to the site.”