UK’s energy import bill has doubled from a year ago according to energy analysts. This now sits at around £117 billion, which is the first time the import bill has even gone past £100 billion. This equates to around £4,200 per household.
In 2022 this figure came from a mixture of fuels, gas, and electricity. £63 billion was spent on oil-based fuels, £49 billion was spent on gas and the rest was spent on coal imports and electricity. This has more than doubled from 2021 when the UK only had an import bill of £54 billion.
Unfortunately, with the wholesale market still very volatile analysts have warned that the UK could see similar bills for the next few years.
The large increase has mostly been said to have been caused by the war in Ukraine but is also linked to inflation globally as well as a national and general rise in demand after the covid pandemic came to a complete end for many countries in 2022.
The UK is very exposed to high energy prices due to being a “net importer” this means the country consumes more energy than it can supply, which means that we then have to rely on imports from other countries. Having this reliance on other countries is what causes such volatility in the UK energy market.
The amount that the UK spent on energy imports last year shows how far we are from reducing our reliance on other countries and increasing energy security.
The government are also trying to reduce the country’s reliance on gas, however, there are currently 24 million homes heated by gas as well as gas-fired power stations that provide 43% of our electricity.
What does this mean for consumers?
The data above shows how extreme the price rise was in energy in 2022. This is why so many domestic and business energy customers have been struggling when it comes to energy bills. Energy analysts have also said that they do not expect these numbers to go down much for the next few years, which means we could be seeing similar levels of energy prices for some time.
Due to this, businesses need to be careful when they sign their next contract. Currently, in March, energy prices have been lower than they were in 2022, however, there are many factors that could cause prices to spike again over the year. We would suggest that your business should think about renewing its energy contracts before that happens.
To prevent your business from struggling with energy bills this year, why not get in touch with us today to find out how our energy consultants could help you? Or if you think you are ready to look for prices now, then get a free quote here.
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