The Big 6 have been in the news a lot lately and not entirely for the right reasons. We hear so much about them, but the information usually only goes as far as price rises.

So who are these energy behemoths that fuel our gas boilers and heat our showers in the morning?
After privatisation on March 31st 1990 the energy industry changed dramatically. As a result 6 companies have emerged as key players in the UK energy market.

Npower
Npower supplies gas and electricity to around 7 million customers in the UK and employs over 11,000 staff. It predominantly produces energy using gas-fired, coal and oil powered stations with a small proportion being generated via renewable energy.
During the 1990s it acquired several smaller companies such as Midlands Electricity, Calortex, and Independent Energy and eventually became Npower in 2000.
They are currently a member of the ‘Percent Club’ which requires them to invest more than 1% of their pre-tax profits back into the community.

British Gas
British gas (including Scottish Gas & Welsh Gas) is the largest energy supplier in the UK and delivers gas and electricity to over 16 million domestic and commercial users. The company also operates in the U.S and Canada with recorded revenues of over $22 billion in 2010.
It currently operates 8 gas-fired power stations but also produces energy via various methods including the largest offshore wind farm in Europe. The giant wind farm covers an area of 20 square km and has 54 turbines.

EDF Energy
EDF energy was founded in 2002 and is owned by French state operated EDF SA. EDF stands for Électricité de France. The UK arm employs over 15,000 people and supplies gas and electricity to almost 6 million homes and businesses.
EDF has made a number of acquisitions including London Electricity, SEEBoard and British Energy. They continue to be a big supporter of green initiatives with EDF operating over 20 wind farms in the UK.

E.ON
E.ON supplies gas and electricity to over 9 million homes in the UK. They operate over 20 windfarms, but also utilise hydropower schemes in England and Wales.
It is currently part of the largest investor owned energy service company in the world delivering gas and electricity to over 26 million customers, their headquarters are based in Germany. The group reported revenues exceeding $92 billion in 2010.
E.ON used to be known as Powergen but was taken over in 2002 and renamed.

Scottish Power
Scottish Power was founded in 1990, employs 24,000 staff and supplies gas and electricity to over 5 million customers in the UK. It is also a subsidiary of Spanish utility company Iberdrola.
It is currently in partnership with Sainsbury’s. So if you buy your energy through Sainsbury’s you are in fact using Scottish Power.
Iberdola bought the company in 2007 for £11.6 billion and effectively incorporated it into its structure making it the third largest energy supplier in Europe.

SSE
SSE supplies 10 million customers with gas and electricity in the UK. They were the first company to be awarded the UK Domestic Electricity and Gas Supplier in Customer Satisfaction prize. They were also responsible for building the first deep water wind turbine in the UK.
SSE have also invested over £850 million in renewable generation, refurbishment and various other construction projects.

Guest Article by Louise Goldstein

Are you worried about your energy bills? With the news of further energy price hikes it could be a very cold winter indeed for those already struggling to make ends meet. However, even if you are on a low fixed income there are measures you can take to make things easier and keep your bills low.

Let’s put this into perspective; according to recent government figures 5.5 million homes in the UK are now in what is known as fuel poverty, this is almost one in five households. This essentially means they have to spend more than 10% of their total income on keeping their homes warm. But that is not even the whole picture because Consumer Focus, a government watchdog, expects the figure to rise by another 1.3 million over the next 12 months due to the energy price hikes.

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has also reported that, between 2004 and 2009, energy prices increased by 75% and gas over 120%. Other reports from other organisations predict the recent announcements will mean the average annual dual fuel bill would have increased by 50% since 2007 to about £1,450.

Top 5 Energy Saving Tips

• Standard light bulbs are not very friendly when it comes to energy efficiency. But if you replace them with energy savers you can save around £40 per light bulb over its lifetime. If you have 12 light bulbs in your house the savings can significantly add up
• Turn electrical appliances off at the socket before you go to bed or if you are not using them. Leaving them on can add 10% to your electric bill
• Most of us have heard this tip before but it is a good one and worth mentioning again. By decreasing your thermostat by just 1.5C you could save as much as 10% on your heating bills
• Now is the time to have a look around and switch from a variable to fixed rate tariff. EDF is currently offering the cheapest rate. It has a one-year online fixed rate and estimated average bills will be about £1,009 a year
• New A-rated high energy efficient condensing gas boilers, such as the ones by British Gas, can reduce your bills by about £225 a year

Small changes turn into big savings over an entire lifetime.

Need some advice?
If you are more than a little worried about your bills there is help. There are literally thousands of people in the same boat. The Money advice Trust a debt charity has reported a 180% increase in reports of fuel debt concerns.

For independent advice you can call the National Debtline (0808 808 4000) they can actually prepare an income and expenditure plan and can help you to come up with a repayment plan so you can resolve any energy debt problems.

Guest Article by Louise Goldstein

One of the UK’s major energy companies has shocked its customers with a huge 19% rise in its gas prices and a massive 10% uplift in electricity tariffs.

Scottish Power has rocked the energy sector with the scale of its rises and will bring down upon itself the wrath of consumer groups already wondering how people can cope with such inflation.

The rises will come into effect on 1 August, but will only affect those not on fixed deals. This has prompted a number of experts to recommend people to sign up fixed deals as quickly as they can.

It’s feared that others will follow where Scottish Power has led and that the other big five energy companies in the UK will make similar rises soon.

British Gas, EDF, E.ON, npower and Southern and Scottish will make announcements soon as to their pricing intentions in the run up to winter. And British Gas has made strong hints that rises are inevitable, given the continually increasing wholesale costs.

But the extent of the Scottish Power increases has stunned customers and energy pundits alike. For the average bill, it has added about £170 which means over a year, the bill has climbed from £1,150 to £1,320.

Scottish Power has over five million customers and has never been adverse to leading the way in announcing price rises. Industry observers had noticed that for the last few weeks the company had been dropping hints about price changes, but the scale of the change has shocked many.

The company were quick to lay the blame firmly at the door of rising wholesale costs, but consumer groups were less impressed with that view, saying that the protection of margins was the real reason behind the rises.

People are being told to get themselves into long term fixed agreements before they might be withdrawn over the coming months.

In a case of almost shutting the door after the horse has bolted from the stable, the regulator of the energy industry is looking at the whole question of whether companies are justified in using wholesale price fluctuations as an excuse to raise their prices, especially when it appears to many that they don’t cut them when they fall again.

The energy companies claim that the situation is more complicated than people believe and that the process of buying energy some months ahead is complicated, and does not always follow what the wholesale market is doing.

One thing is for sure though, Scottish Power won’t be alone for long.

Guest Article by Neil Camp 

The recent nuclear scare in Japan has done more than frighten the life out of Western European governments who were just persuading their populations that nuclear, afterall, was now a tamed monster.

It has thrown the whole energy debate out of kilter. Latest conceived wisdom is that the world has about 20 to 30 years left of comparatively cheap fossil fuels (before they become very expensive with higher production costs).

Nevermind for a minute that they might be harming the environment, the fact is that at today’s estimates, the current stocks are at the wrong end of the tank: nearing empty.

Now, okay, Russia has lots left (oil, gas, you name it), as does parts of the Middle East which appears to have discovered plentiful natural gas. But Russia has a tendency to sulk when it comes to supplying energy, and the Middle East is undergoing radical political upheaval which might not stop at Libya.

But if the West wants true energy freedom and comfort, the frozen wastes of the poles will have to fall to the oil companies, despite the environmental howls of protest, and the US might just have to start drilling off their East coast where it’s said there’s buckets of oil.

So politicians across the West saw nuclear as literally a great white light ready to save their problems. Three Mile Island was just an ugly memory (and some say not a bad movie) and Chernobyl thankfully happened in a part of the world where people don’t go on holiday.

And for the UK Government in particular, who see that in 20 years time the country is going to struggle to generate little of its own power, nuclear power was a God send. And when the French company EDF came along and started buying parts of the UK nuclear infrastructure, the Government took shelter in their upbeat PR machine which had well groomed men in suits saying that nuclear power was now nice and clean.

Oh dear. What a difference a Tsunami half way across the world makes. And for every day that TV stations focus on hissing steam coming from the stricken plant, you can strike a year off the time before nuclear power once again becomes the power of the future. Think of the bowed heads in the EDF Boardroom.

And the mother of all problems now confronts the politicians. Nuclear is back on the naughty step, shale gas retrieval is about as popular as killing badgers and wind power is fine as long as it’s about a hundred miles offshore and out of sight.

Yet the country’s population craves ever more energy to run their iPods, cars and every other conceivable gadget you can think of.

In other words, the UK populace can’t have its cake and eat it. Nuclear energy is out (given the fear of meltdown); the new wonder fuel shale gas is getting people onto the streets in protest and wind turbines either make too much noise, or kill too many birds.

But if the population of the UK don’t wake up soon, they might find their energy is more expensive than they ever had imagined, and that’s the true cost of not in my back yard.

Guest Article by Neil Camp 

Energy industry regulator Ofgem has announced that it has launched “misselling” investigations into four of the UK’s largest energy suppliers. The four named are nPower, Scottish power, Scottish and Southern Energy, and EDF Energy.

The investigation concerns whether the four energy suppliers are complying with new regulations after a recent Ofgem probe.

What’s more, Ofgem has established a “Hotline” with Consumer Direct, so that any customers with examples, or evidence of misselling can tell their woes. The number to reach this service is 08454 04 05 06. Customers are being urged to call if they are at all concerned about the sales tactics of the four energy companies when negotiating energy contracts. This might include face-to-face dealings, or by telephone.

Ofgem is keen to review any evidence of misselling.

The regulator is throwing its weight around after its recent retail market probe and tougher obligations placed on energy suppliers.

The Ofgem Senior Partner, Markets, Andrew Wright, said:
“Suppliers have existing obligations to detect and prevent misselling and new licence conditions were brought in following our probe to further increase protection for customers. We expect all suppliers to comply with these tougher obligations but if our investigations find otherwise we will take strong action.”

It was last October when the new Ofgem obligations were introduced. It meant that the energy suppliers had to be more proactive in the prevention of misselling to customers face-to-face and over the telephone. Key were the conditions that if the companies were selling face-to-face, then they are obliged to provide their customers with an estimate before any agreements, or contracts are signed. Furthermore, most customers should get a comparison of the supplier’s offer with their current deal.

Ofgem acknowledged at the time that these newer obligations were tougher than those used within the general consumer protection law, but argued that the importance of the issues raised in energy deals were such that it warranted tough sanctions.

Both Ofgem and Consumer Focus have also published a leaflet with has been designed to give consumers helpful advice and guidance when it comes to dealing with energy suppliers.

Ofgem goes on to say that just because they have launched the investigations, does not mean to say that all, or any one of the four energy suppliers involved has either broken a condition of the new rules, or has broken the law.

The regulator has had to fine companies before following similar investigations. In 2008 nPower was stung for £1.8 million and £2 million was levied on London Electricity (which is now part of EDF Energy) in 2002.

Should Ofgem get upset with one of the companies supplying the UK market, it has the power to levy a financial penalty of up to 10% of the company’s total turnover.

Such a fine would make a sizeable dent in any one of the four energy suppliers named by Ofgem in this latest investigation.

Guest Article by Neil Camp