Gas and electricity bills could climb yet higher this winter

Gas and electricity bills could climb another 15 per cent, leaving customers facing bills of £1,500 this winter, a report has warned.
he increases would deal another blow to families who have already been hit with increases of 40 per cent so far this year.

The prediction, from price comparison website energyhelpline.com, comes as electricity prices on the wholesale market hit a record high.

National Grid, the company in charge of distributing electricity around the country has warned that there is less surplus electricity in the system than previously thought. Even if just one of the UK's 38 major power stations fell out of action – as often happens – it would cause serious enough shortages for factories to be forced to shut down to save energy, it said.

Britain's ageing power plants have struggled this year, with record numbers falling out of action for emergency repairs.

National Grid's grim warning caused winter electricity baseload power prices – the key benchmark used by the industry – to increase by 2 per cent percent to £105 a megawatt hour, a record level.

Escalating gas and electricity prices this year are one of the reasons why inflation has hit a 16-year high of 4.7 per cent.

The forecast came despite the Met Office predicting that this winter could be much milder than average, which would mean power stations were put under less pressure.

Alan Asher, the chief executive of energywatch the consumer watchdog, said there was little reason for fuel bills to increase, saying the energy industry too often "talked up" price rises. "I think people have just lost their patience. The public are revolting. If we see rise of any significance in the New Yea the public will take to the streets."

Electricity can't be stored, so production needs to continually meet demand. The power grid has spare plants that only run at times when demand and prices are at their highest.

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Portugal embraces wave power

Suddenly a lonely spot on the Portuguese coast has become the centre of the wave power industry.

The beach at Agucadoura, just north of Porto, is where electricity from the world's first wave farm is being cabled ashore. Five kilometres out to sea a Pelamis wave machine is gently riding the Atlantic swell, generating power for the Portuguese grid.

The wave farm has just been officially launched after a frustrating delay of more than a year. "We had an issue with the underwater connections", explains engineering manager, Ross Henderson. He is sitting with me in the beachfront substation which takes in the power. "I can't believe such a small thing cost the project a whole year."

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Tesco launches home insulation service

Homeowners wanting to reduce their fuel bills can now add low-cost loft and cavity wall insulation to their supermarket shopping lists after Tesco launched an energy efficiency service for customers.

The supermarket giant is offering insulation for loft or wall cavities for a flat rate of £199, although this price is subject to survey and may be higher for people in unusually large properties or those requiring additional work.

The new service is open to all homeowners, residential landlords and private tenants, and will be free to customers aged 70 or more and those on qualifying state benefits.

Council or housing association tenants wanting their home insulated are advised to put a request to their landlord and ask them to contact Tesco directly.

Tesco said it had insulated 50 homes in a trial over the summer and now hoped to insulate half a million UK homes in the next three years.

Customers can book a free survey by phone or online.

If they agree to go ahead with the work Tesco says it should be carried out within six weeks of making the initial contact. Loft insulation takes less than three hours to install while wall cavity insulation takes up to four hours.

Customers paying for the service will receive 199 Clubcard points per insulation measure on their Tesco loyalty cards.

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Electric Range Rover with zero emissions to be unveiled

A prototype Range Rover capable of going 200 miles on a single electric charge is to be unveiled this week.

It has been designed by a team working in Oxford and could be on sale next year.

The bill for driving an environmentally friendly Range Rover will be a hefty one, with the prices ranging from £95,000 to £125,000.

However, unlike the car's conventional equivalents, the tax bill for running the car will be minimal.

Electric cars on the market, such as the G-Wizz have a range of around 50-60 miles - but are also on sale at a fraction of the proposed price for the Liberty Electric Range Rover.

It is the latest in a series of alternative powered cars being designed by the motor industry which has come under intense pressure to reduce emissions.

The European Union has told car makers that they must bring their average CO2 output down to 130 grams per kilometre by 2012.

According to the company, this car will offer swift acceleration and a high top speed, while costing 80 per cent less to run than a petrol equivalent.

Other innovations include roof mounted solar panels, which will provide additional charge for the batteries as well as powering some of the car's electrics while it is stopped.

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