Energy bills

[wraymond]

Look at this entirely from a ‘cost’ point of view irrespective of whatever flavour we have as a government.

‘Energy’ bills? Do me a favour. It’s time we collectively called things what they actually are. E/Bills are what the so-called suppliers pay. What we, the consumers, pay are the profits and hugely inflated retention bonuses to the financiers and the cousins and spouses of their commercially appointed boards to make and maintain profits! Remember the ‘Gas Boards’ and ‘Electricity Boards’ that were on the high streets of towns and cities?

Energy is an essential national resource and should be a feature of government control rather than a roulette wheel with hidden weights strategically placed in favour of the house. Their primary, and only, concern is the maintenance and growth of profit for the shareholders who then buy more shares and foreign properties. Useful barometers are the share price graphs but even they do not show the real picture.

And.....another thing! This stupid con trick about a ‘cap’ on the amount they can charge (or more accurate – what they can get away with). It’s an invitation to increase already increased profits before you can’t! ‘They’ really think we are stupid.

[sln8458]

This may upset a few, sorry.

But The energy companies that you & I pay for our gas and electric are not the ones making the huge profits. They are not the ones getting hit for the 'windfall taxes'

In 1986 Margret Thatcher's government sold off British gas for approx £9billion. At that point in time British gas had contracts with all of the major companies extracting gas from the north sea to buy gas from them at fixed prices.

From that point onwards the gas producers were able to extricate themselves from these contracts and sell the gas produced on the open market, which is where BG had to then buy from, and ALL of today's supplies also buy from.

Now had Ms Thatcher not stuck here ore in and left well alone, BG would be getting it's (& hence ours) gas at 50p/unit NOT over 600p/unit as it is today.
[note: the unit they use is not the same as the unit we are charged for.
Gas is generally bought/sold on the open market by cubic volume, where you & I are charges per Kwh]

[richw]

There is no way that we could be in 1985 and the prices of that era maintained today. A nationalised BG cannot simply demand that BP, Shell, Texaco etc sell at such a low price!

The only 'trick' with the nationalised industries is that they could sell stuff for less than they collected, and beg the chancellor to subsidise the difference via tax. That means we all pay. And then we ration services to restrict the demand (look at NHS for example).

There is nothing wrong with a free market. Lots of countries do it.

However, we should have UK-based supply. We are sitting on shale and coal. We could build nuclear. we can end the 'green' subsidies.

[sln8458]

Originally Posted by richw

There is no way that we could be in 1985 and the prices of that era maintained today. A nationalised BG cannot simply demand that BP, Shell, Texaco etc sell at such a low price!

I didn't say that.
What I was saying is that if BG had not been privatised, then the system of contracts & hence fixed prices most likely would have continued. As each contract came to it's natural end date a new contract would have been 'negotiated'.
Until 2015 I worked at one of the companies producing gas from the north sea. At that time it cost 35p/unit to get the gas to 'the beach' and it is this cost that I based my estimate of 50p on. However (at that time) the market price was very near, and often below the 35p. Which is why so many smaller 'supplier startups' got onto the band-wagon of buying the gas cheap and selling it to us at a profit. These are the ones that later went bust!.

Did you know that in 2020 (not 100% sure on that date) the price of gas dropped to 7p for a prolonged period and as a direct result many smaller gas fields were closed as they were 'uneconomic'. Some of these have managed to be re-opened. Others have been totally decommissioned and the platforms removed, these will not be coming back into production even though there is gas in the field.

[Gate Keeper]

As some of you know, we spend some of the time out in Kenya where power cuts and power rationing is not uncommon. In Kenya we have mains, Solar and other means of back up to get through the power outages.

Yesterday I ordered 2 rechargeable camping lanterns with power banks 100H in case of power cuts this winter.

I read on Bloomberg yesterday how there is a global shortage of toilet rolls and this is due to the expense of the energy used in its production. I suspect this news has not reached the supermarkets.

[roverbarmy]

The sun is free. The wind is free. Oil and gas in the ground are free. We are not free, despite what most people will tell you! Try burning wood (from your garden, or old scrap wood) in a smokeless zone!

[Saga Lout]

Originally Posted by MSS

Interfering with the meter is an offence - Electricity Act 1989, Schedule 7, Section 11.

I just saw your your comment, wrapping a shield around a meter isn't interfering with it, taking it to bits would be.

[MSS]

Originally Posted by Saga Lout

I just saw your your comment, wrapping a shield around a meter isn't interfering with it, taking it to bits would be.

Wrong - must try harder!


The paragraph I referenced states:

"If any person intentionally or by culpable negligence—

(a)a......

(b)prevents any such meter from duly registering the quantity of electricity supplied,

he shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale."

[Saga Lout]

Originally Posted by MSS

Wrong - must try harder!


The paragraph I referenced states:

"If any person intentionally or by culpable negligence—

(a)a......

(b)prevents any such meter from duly registering the quantity of electricity supplied,

he shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale."

The shielding would only stop it being read from an outside source, it would not stop it recording units used, the power cables to and from the meter determine the usage and would continue to do so, the shielding would simply stop it being read remotely. The meters send signals that way and there's no offence in stopping that signal. At no point did I suggest that a shield would stop a meter recording units used, just the ability to read them would be the effect of shielding one.

[Phil th Barrow]

Originally Posted by Saga Lout

The shielding would only stop it being read from an outside source, it would not stop it recording units used, the power cables to and from the meter determine the usage and would continue to do so, the shielding would simply stop it being read remotely. The meters send signals that way and there's no offence in stopping that signal. At no point did I suggest that a shield would stop a meter recording units used, just the ability to read them would be the effect of shielding one.

Yes i found this out by accident. I needed th socket that was powering th smart meter and during that time it stopped th meter from transmitting via th mains. When plugged in again it resumed.