Powering Homes news, page 85
- March 2023
Great British Nuclear launched
The government has launched Great British Nuclear to support new nuclear builds, announced in the Spring Budget 2023 alongside a three-month extension of the Energy Price Guarantee at £2,500.
Judicial review judgment on Bulb sale published
The High Court judgment on the Bulb Energy special administration sale process was published at the end of March 2023, with the transaction completed on 20 December 2022.
MCS and HIES withdraw Green Energy Together accreditations, installer enters administration
MCS and HIES withdrew Green Energy Together's accreditations in March 2023, and the installer then entered administration, leaving some households without deposits or with unfinished work.
Ministers approve hydrogen blending in UK gas network
Ministers have approved blending hydrogen into the UK gas network, with commercial implementation expected by 2025-26 subject to safety assessments and legislative change.
Rules and RegulationWhere Our Energy Comes FromNew Technology
Octopus Flux tariff launched
Octopus Flux, a variable import and export tariff for homes with solar panels and a battery, has been available since March 2023 and changes every three months with Ofgem's price cap.
Only three suppliers exited the market in SY13
Ofgem's annual Feed-in Tariffs report shows supplier exits fell from 27 in Scheme Year 12 to three in Scheme Year 13, as market stability returned and scheme costs rose to £1.73 billion.
Ovo and SSE launch fixed tariffs estimated to yield suppliers around £484 and £469 profit per customer
Analysis by Future Energy Associates estimates that two new one year fixed tariffs from Ovo and SSE will earn suppliers £484 and £469 profit per customer while costing households more than the price cap.
Powering Up Britain energy security plan published
The Government published Powering Up Britain in March 2023, its second energy security plan in two years, setting out measures intended to reduce reliance on imported gas and oil.
Smart Pay Energy withdrew from the SEG during Year 3
Ofgem's SEG annual report records that Smart Pay Energy left the scheme part way through Year 3 against policy, and will be added to the Supplier Performance Report.
Spring Budget announces alignment of direct debit and pre-payment meter charges
The Spring Budget confirmed that charges for comparable direct debit and pre-payment meter customers would be aligned, ending the premium pre-payment customers pay for their energy.
SSEN plans multi-million pound Bordon infrastructure upgrade for spring 2023
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks is co-ordinating a multi-million pound electricity infrastructure upgrade in Bordon, Hampshire, with preparatory works completed in late 2022 and main works due to start in spring 2023.
Telford home upgraded with MCS certified solar panels and battery storage
MCS has published a case study of a Telford home fitted with MCS certified solar panels and battery storage in March 2023, reporting that the system has supplied around two-thirds of the household's electricity.
Tesco raises EV charging prices
Tesco raised the cost of charging an electric car at its stores in March 2023, with the 7kW rate rising from 28p to 44p per kWh, ending the free charging it once offered.
The Times reveals forced prepayment installations by British Gas subcontractor
The Times reported that a British Gas subcontractor used brutal methods to force-fit prepayment meters in vulnerable customers' homes, prompting suppliers to halt the practice.
New Warmer Homes Scotland scheme launches
A new version of Warmer Homes Scotland, built on a whole house retrofit approach, replaced the previous scheme in early 2023, targeting lower-income and vulnerable households in fuel poverty.
Grants and SchemesYour Type of HomeScotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
Wave 2.1 government funding allocated
The Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund's Wave 2.1 was allocated £778 million of government funding in March 2023, covering proposed energy performance improvements to around 90,000 social homes in England.
Welsh Government plans to start next Part L review in 2023
The Welsh Government has said it will begin the next review of Part L of the Building Regulations in 2023, with a minimum expectation of a 75% carbon improvement option for 2025.
- February 2023
Government releases Fuel Poverty Statistics for England showing 3.26 million households in fuel poverty
Official figures show 3.26 million English households in fuel poverty, with National Energy Action estimating the 2030 efficiency target is now 300 years away on current progress.
Welsh Government Fuel Support Scheme application window closes
The Welsh Government Fuel Support Scheme stopped taking applications on 28 February 2023, closing a £200 payment that was open to households regardless of how they paid for energy.
Grants and SchemesEnergy Bills and the Price CapScotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
E3G publishes recommendations ahead of the UK Spring Budget 2023
E3G has published budget recommendations calling for a ten-year funding pledge and fairer distribution of public money for energy efficiency and heat pumps across the UK.
Government announces online portal for Alternative Fuel Payment claims
Heating oil customers who missed the £200 Alternative Fuel Payment through their electricity account will be able to claim it through a government online portal running by 6 March 2023.
Grants and SchemesEnergy Bills and the Price CapBoilers and Heating
Ofgem to announce April to June price cap level
Ofgem will set the April to June price cap on February 27th, with suppliers writing to households within days, as Energy UK urges the government to hold the Energy Price Guarantee at £2,500.
Ofgem sets price cap at £3,280 for April to June 2023
Ofgem has set the energy price cap for 1 April to 30 June 2023 at £3,280 for a typical dual fuel direct debit household, down from £4,279, but the Energy Price Guarantee rises to £3,000.
Online portal opens for £600 EBSS alternative funding applications in Northern Ireland
The UK government has opened an online portal and telephone helpline so more than 28,000 Northern Ireland households without a direct electricity supplier can apply for £600 energy bill support.
Grants and SchemesEnergy Bills and the Price CapYour Type of Home
Rooftop solar installations double in a year to post-subsidy record
Solar Energy UK reports 130,596 MCS-registered rooftop solar installations in 2022, more than double the 2021 figure, with a post-subsidy monthly record of 16,043 registrations in January 2023.
Study finds green hydrogen heating two to three times more expensive than heat pumps in Europe
An ETH Zürich study published in Energy Conversion and Management finds that heating homes with green hydrogen would cost roughly two to three times more than using electric heat pumps across the EU and UK.
House of Lords committee letter describes Boiler Upgrade Scheme as 'seriously failing'
The House of Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee has told the government its Boiler Upgrade Scheme is seriously failing, citing cost, installer shortages and poor advice.
WMCA urges West Midlands residents to claim unclaimed energy bill vouchers
The West Midlands Combined Authority says more than 150,000 Energy Bills Support Scheme vouchers in the region are unclaimed, and the mayor has urged households to redeem them by 31 March 2023.
Call for evidence on prepayment rules launched
Ofgem opened a call for evidence on prepayment meter rules on 21 February 2023, the first step in a process that ended with new licence conditions taking effect on 8 November 2023.
Citizens Advice responds to Ofgem's outline of next steps on forced prepayment meter installations
Citizens Advice has welcomed Ofgem repeating its call for suppliers to check whether customers should be moved off prepayment meters, warning that the regulator and government must act if progress stalls.