British Gas registered a 98% increase in profits in the first half of 2010

According to its parent company Centrica, British Gas profits rose by 98% in the first half of 2010 with operating profits surpassing the £580m mark. British gas who supplies gas to more than half of the country’s household and businesses alike, saw its profit margin go sky high thanks to a bitter winter and an 8% rise in residential and commercial gas usage.

In February the company made a smart move of cutting down gas bill prices which generated nothing less than 223,000 new costumers. With almost a quarter of a million new customers, British Gas has now a total of 15.79 million customers throughout Britain.

Despite such improvements in profitability the energy supplier and its parent company Centrica stated that higher energy prices are on the way due to slowly rising gas prices that are expected to increase still further this autumn.

Nick Luff, Centrica’s finance director, gave a warning of the pain to come by claiming “wholesale gas and power prices are looking quite a lot higher for this coming winter.”

What amazes me is the fact that when wholesale gas prices dropped last year energy suppliers took their time to lower energy bills and now based on market predictions the same suppliers are already warning that energy and gas prices will rise this winter.

Sam Laidlaw, the chief executive, defended the group against such accusations by saying – “All the evidence is that price cuts are passed on as quickly as price rises,”

He then concluded:

“I can’t say when we will need to raise them and we’re deliberately not signalling when to the competition. We will try to delay it as long as we can.”

Before criticising British Gas there are several factors that should be taken for granted.

The company was the first to lower its prices this year and it has maintained the best standard tariff of all major suppliers. Then we have the fixed-rate deals proposed by the company which might not be seen as a good option today but many energy brokers are evangelising it will be a good deal in the coming months.

Why don’t you share your thoughts with us now? What do you think will happen to household and business energy prices this winter? Will suppliers be able to hold down the rates? Share your thoughts below.

Or call our energy team today on 0870 710 7560 or request a business gas quote for your business.

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Choosing the right Business Gas Supplier

Ever since the energy sector was thrown open to competition and private entrepreneurs in the UK, we have seen a massive increase in the number of providers that supply gas and electricity.  This has obviously created a very vibrant market where users have tens of options to choose from and it has also put an onus on the providers to provide the best possible services to their customers for fear of losing them to the competition.

Energy switching services are a kind of company that has come to exist since the EU began deregulating the gas and electricity markets, to open them to international competition, in 1996.

While this form of growth has been great for the average consumer, it has also created a sort of problem for most business owners – a good one though. What we’re referring to is the problem of too many choices. To steal a quote from our friendly neighborhood, Spiderman, and tweak it a bit, the freedom of choice comes with a great responsibility of choose the right option for your business.

Here are a few tips to help you with this process:

Price: Isn’t this something we’re all concerned about the most? We want to cut down on our costs, and what better way to do it than to choose someone who’s services come cheaper than an alternative provider. However, that is not all.

Supply Plan: Although the cost of supply is the main consideration, it is also the trickiest. The mystery behind what is sold to you at that seemingly low cost can only be uncovered when you understand the exact plan and any other costs associated with it. Therefore, before choosing any supplier, ensure that you’ve looked into the details of the plans for all prospective suppliers.

Service Record: The price may be good, the plan may be great, but what if you don’t have a supply of gas when you need it most due to some technical trouble at your supplier’s office or just sheer negligence? That would pretty much beat the whole purpose of this exercise as it would cost you a much bigger loss than the money you may saves up on the low price of gas.

Extra perks: Say you’ve done this entire exercise and you realise that there are actually four or five suppliers that match the criteria. In that case, you might want to take a look into any extra offers or promotions that they have for you.

Lastly, if you do not wish to spend all this time doing research and trying to make the right decision, just enlist the help of an energy broker such as Catalyst and relax. We will do all the hard work for you and bring you a list of the best gas suppliers your money can buy. And we will manage the whole process for you.

Call our energy team today on 0870 710 7560 or request a business gas quote call back from us.

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Comparing Business Electricity Tariffs – Top Energy Saving Tips For Your Busisness

Did you know that your company can save up to 40% on its energy bills?  If you took the initiative to switch your electricity provider on a regular basis and let an energy broker negotiate better power prices for your company, you will indirectly lessen your company operational costs.  Here are some tips that can help you get started on your way to major savings.

1.  Compare business electricity contract terms amongst potential providers: Some business owners choose to deal with energy brokers rather than going directly to the suppliers.

This allows the brokers to negotiate on behalf of  a company, and allows the company to benefit from a range of supplier quotes.  Sometimes the broker will have a reduced business electricity tariff available to them as part of there overall product set.  Of course, it goes without saying that an energy broker should be able to negotiate a much better deal for a business than an individual business owner can directly.

However, whether you deal with a supplier directly or choose to use a broker, it pays to scrutinise the business electricity contract terms.   Contract duration is an important issue you should carefully consider.   Most contracts last between one to five years, but remember,  some providers will charge an early termination penalty if you decide to end the contract prematurely, so plan carefully ahead before you decide to enter into a long-term contract.   A profesional energy broker will always remind you about the impending contract renewal and should present you with a new electricity tariff comparison.

2. Let your new provider make the switch easier: You don’t need to worry about contacting your old provider should you decide to go with a new supplier directly or through a broker.  Your broker or supplier will take care of everything and make the switch as seamless as possible.  However if you have a current contract with your current provider or have an outstanding debt with them, then expect them to object to the transfer.

3. Educate yourself on who are the top energy suppliers: E.On, Npower, EDF Energy, and Scottish & Southern Energy are some of the more reputable suppliers in the market.   It pays to know more about your chosen supplier and their background in the industry, which will definitely help you make a more informed final decision about whom to consider for any potential savings and better service and support.

For more information on energy brokers, and the services that they offer, have a quick look through the rest of our site.

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Yes to Renewable and No to Nuclear – Says the Energy Secretary

Energy Secretary wants to Shield Britain’s Energy with Renewables.  Ahead of today’s Commons statement on energy policy, speaking to the Sunday Telegraph and Sky News the Energy Secretary Chris Huhne made quite clear what will be the Government’s plan to prevent Britain from suffering a power crisis.  Mr Huhne was very clear when he spoke out in favour of harnessing onshore and offshore wind power and that there won’t be any Government money to subside new nuclear power plants.

With flows of North Sea oil and gas diminishing in future years, the Energy Secretary’s intention is to strengthen Britain’s energy production by making it more independent, allowing it to withstand “shocks from the outside world” which could send prices soaring for both households and businesses.

We have to agree with Mr Huhne to a certain extent because right now, the UK imports nearly a third of its energy from unstable regions such as Russia and the Middle East.   Which we already know makes energy prices move up and down through out the year.  A 100% nationalised energy production would be virtually impossible these days but if the Government had more control over it, energy prices could become more stable.

“There is going to be a strong emphasis on the economic benefit of becoming more independent of energy imports.  The lights will not go out on my watch,” – declared Mr Huhne

It would be ideal for Britain and any other country in the world, if it could be totally self energy sufficient relying only renewable energy generation.  Even though this is a futuristic dream to say the least, Britain has got great potential to increase its renewable energy generation not only with wind power but also with wave and tidal power.

As stressed by Mr Huhne, all three technologies are in their infancy and there is room for a lot of improvement.

To date there are approximately 262 wind farms operating in the UK counting on & offshore farms. These wind farms have the capacity to power more than 2.5 million homes on ideal wind conditions.  Right now there are 27 onshore and 5 offshore wind farms under construction not to mention the 468 winds farms planned to populate Britain over the next decade or so.

Last December, figures showed proposals were under way to increase Scotland’s total from 1131 turbines to at least 3855 with nearly 1000 already given consent or under construction.

Despite the fact that the Energy Secretary stated that there won’t be any subsidy to build new nuclear plants he expects that such power station will still be built to help secure the safety of the UK’s energy generation.

We want to hear from you now. What is the best way to secure Britain’s energy generation? Nuclear or Renewables?  Share your thoughts on our comments section below.

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Business energy bills to rise due to higher gas prices.

Business energy prices as well as household energy prices are set to rise as a consequence of a 32% increase in wholesale gas prices over the past 7 months.  The forecast comes from Nera an economic consulting firm.  The company has been monitoring the UK´s wholesale gas market since January and reveals that the 32% increase in wholesale prices, will translate into higher energy bills for businesses and households across the land.

The surge is being attributed to a combination of lower Qatari liquefied natural gas imports and the fragile pipeline supply from the Norwegian North Sea.

“In the long run, it’s true, gas prices do feed into retail prices. That’s been observed over a long period. What happens is the pressure builds up and there’s a mismatch between wholesale and retail prices, then one of the companies move and the others follow.”  Explains Nera director Graham Shuttleworth.

This is despite the decline in energy prices in March, when watchdog Ofgem published a report suggesting Britain’s ‘big six’ suppliers should pass wholesale price cuts on to consumers.  Economists and energy brokers alike are now concluding that the reductions weren’t as good as they thought it would be.

Such market variations only stress even further the need for businesses to have a reliable and competent energy consultancy firm.  One that understands with perfection how the complex UK energy market works and is able to find the right business gas contracts based on the clients requirements.

Hiring an energy consultancy company simply provides an independent and fresh approaches that help businesses achieve tangible results and save money on gas and electricity bills.

To learn more about how and independent energy consultancy service can save your business thousands of pounds each year on energy bills contact Catalyst or give us a call at 0870 710 7560 and speak with a friendly UK based energy broker.

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Nuclear Sector Still Apprehensive over Government’s Statements

Thursday’s meeting between the CEOs from major energy companies and the Coalition’s Government Energy Secretary, Chris Huhne, didn’t go as well as the UK’s nuclear industry expected.  During last week’s meeting the Government announced that it is working to strengthen national policy statements for energy, to help ensure that large energy projects like new nuclear plants go ahead.

In a written statement addressed to the parliament from the energy minister Charles Hendry,  he said the Government will be launching a re-consultation on revised draft national Energy Policy Statements, to ensure large infrastructure projects like nuclear power plants can go ahead with the minimum of delay. Despite all that the UK’s nuclear industry still apprehensive and uncertain to whether the Government will provide the security needed for large investments in the sector.

The fact that the Government is planning a re-consultation has plunged the nuclear industry into further uncertainty. Even though the energy minister confirmed that by 2018 at least one new nuclear power plant will be generating electricity in Britain.

“Plans for the first new nuclear power station to begin generating electricity by 2018 remain on course” – Charles Hendry, UK energy minister.

Vincent de Rivaz, chief executive of EDF Energy, the French state-owned utility giant’s British unit, said: “With the delay on the national policy statements it is doubly important we forge ahead with the other vital elements of the framework to create the confidence for progress.”

“Any further delay could undermine the confidence of potential investors and companies in the nuclear supply chain,” said Keith Parker, chief executive of the Nuclear Industry Association. “Any further delay could undermine the confidence of potential investors and companies in the nuclear supply chain. We would urge government to continue progress on the other workstreams around nuclear such as regulatory justification, reform of the regulator and market modernisation”.

Many Energy Brokers and energy industry experts expressed a lack of faith when asked about Britain’s ability to attract the investment needed  to safeguard the nuclear programme before the country starts to run short of electricity in the second half of this decade.

To sum things up the EEF stated that the UK’s energy policy is “no longer fit for purpose unless reformed and calls on the Government to take the difficult decisions necessary to get the country’s energy policy back on track.” This raised even more uncertainties within the energy industry and the nuclear sector in particular.

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Why every company should monitor it’s energy consumption

There’s a reason why you do business, and that is to make profits.  As the saying goes, “a penny saved is a penny earned,” it goes without saying that a very important way of making profits is cutting down on your overheads or costs.  This is where monitoring and optimising energy consumption comes in.

Energy is the single most important attribute for everyone in the world –  regardless of whether you’re into manufacturing, IT, communications, or any other line of business.  However, despite such a huge demand for energy, its supply is limited, and if we do not optimise our use and continue to burden the supply ever more, we can end up facing seriously steep prices for the same commodity that we seem to take for granted at the moment.

Another aspect to consider for most businesses is that most developed nations in the world have become very aware of their carbon footprint these days.  More energy consumption means a higher carbon footprint, therefore, if you’re using a certain amount of energy, you better have good reasons for doing so.  Otherwise, not only would you be throwing away all the potential savings you could have made, but also adding a carbon tax component to your overall bills.  Of course, this can be avoided if you simply monitor your energy consumption and learn exactly where it is you’re spending most of your energy supply.

Now that we’ve seen the importance of trying to monitor energy consumption and optimizing it, let’s look at some of the ways in which you can do that.

Smart Meters

Or sometimes called electricity AMR meters,  these are truly revolutionary devices, and if until now you’ve been hiding behind the excuse that your old clunky meter never gives you an exact reading, you can’t do it anymore.  A smart meter can precisely calculate the energy consumption on your premises and provide you with a detailed report on your usage patterns. Using this information, you can easily figure out whether it’s possible for you to change your operating time to a slot when the energy supply is cheaper or identify wasted energy during non working hours.

Choosing a good supplier

This is obviously quite an important step. If you’re doing everything right and monitoring your energy usage daily to keep it under check, why not go a little further and see if there’s someone who can supply you the same energy at a lower cost?

Searching for energy leaks:

If you don’t need it, why waste it? Enlist professional help and ensure that no part of your precious energy supply that comes to your premises gets wasted simply due to a fault or a leak in your supply chain system.

These are some of the most important reasons for keeping an eye on your energy consumption and some basic ways of doing it.

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