Energy Prices (Strictly NO referrals!)

b0rn2sk8 said:
Just to play devils advocate, but are centrica really making extraordinary profits?

When I ran the numbers for 2021 yesterday, their profit margin was about 5.5%. £18bn turnover with just under £1bn profit, not exactly taking it in.

For context, Apple has a net profit margin of about 25%.
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Fair point. Centrica profits would provide what, £80 of each houses bills per year? Thing is, this is one of many oil/gas suppliers.

So I guess the greater question is should any profit be reasonable in proper crisis? Keeping in mind we're forcing energy suppliers to go bust, families to go hungry, but the wholesale suppliers get to do what they want?

Not fair IMHO and mostly I was pointing out that the anger is mis-directed. I was clear that there is a global energy crisis and it is always going to hurt.
 
fez said:
If you start to look too closely into how the world actually operates its hard not to be depressed. Its corrupt and disgusting at pretty much every turn and companies have destroyed lives and ruined the planet in the name of profit and they have done so with their eyes wide open. The don't care and they are never held to account. Every industry where there is money to be made is corrupt. Every single one.
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I partly agree.
There are far far more ethical companies out there.
The nature of human activity is using resources we cannot get away from that.
But you can do it responsibly or not, and oil seems to take not to the extreme.

Part of the problem is most of big oil is american and they seem to have no morals at all.
 
chroniclard said:
Heat pumps are quite rare/expensive as they are pants.
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They're simple machines that have been around for decades. They take heat from one place and put it somewhere else in a more condensed form... They do it without fuss, any meaninful maintenance and no issues with explosive gas.

UK houses are pants that mean the "low-level heat" provided by heat-pumps tends not to keep up with losses. Sure you can just spec high power high-temperature heat-pumps, but it doesn't tend to make financial sense.
 
0h_no_not_again said:
Holy ****, just to continue my rant this was front page of financial times: "Centrica urges more state help with energy bills", meaning Centrica are big in wholesale trade of gas as well as suppliers of gas into the wholesale market and are making extraordinary profits. They also own British gas who are making meagre profits.

So either the wholesale traders of gas/wholesale suppliers of gas are screwing us, or there is some dodgy accounting and profits from British Gas are somehow making their way into the parent company.

It is so evil that you couldn't make this stuff up.
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They would still make billions if they knocked off £200 off each household customer
 
b0rn2sk8 said:
And yet they are used extensively in far colder countries than ours E.g. Sweden. because they work and work very well.

this and pants is putting it politely.
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Yes and they moan they aren't good enough and light their fireplaces.

Heatpumps were a fad a few years back, but people have stopped buying them since there is no gain from retrofitting one.
 
chroniclard said:
Heat pumps are quite rare/expensive as they are pants.
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Have a heat pump on my home which was installed before I moved in. About 18 months after moving in, had my heat pump recalled as one blew up in Stoke area. Have an immersion heater as heat pump only heats water to 62c. Just have it on for 15 mins to top heat to 65c when legionella dies. The manufacturer (Mitsubishi) gave us all £120 to cover us for extra costs incurred such as buying electric heaters etc. It was in the summer and only had heat pump switched off for 10-12 days.

The govt want us to have these things but the engineers maintaining them are few and far between. For every 1 heat pump engineer, there’s about 400 gas engineers.

Managed to find a company who does maintaining them and they are based the other side of the county. Booked the next service next year when they came round early Feb
 
cheesefest said:
Have a heat pump on my home which was installed before I moved in. About 18 months after moving in, had my heat pump recalled as one blew up in Stoke area. Have an immersion heater as heat pump only heats water to 62c. Just have it on for 15 mins to top heat to 65c when legionella dies. The manufacturer (Mitsubishi) gave us all £120 to cover us for extra costs incurred such as buying electric heaters etc. It was in the summer and only had heat pump switched off for 10-12 days.

The govt want us to have these things but the engineers maintaining them are few and far between. For every 1 heat pump engineer, there’s about 400 gas engineers.

Managed to find a company who does maintaining them and they are based the other side of the county. Booked the next service next year when they came round early Feb
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Get ready to bend over. The bills for servicing them can be really expensive.
 
An energy tariff based on daily amount used could be useful for getting people to reduce overall usage - 1kwh free, 2-5 costs 5p, 5-10 7.5p etc etc

Could encourage lower usage

You could also
 
If elec prices go up some more then 5 years could be on the cards, its more like 7-8 really as long as you dont overpay on install
Max panels are only just over 400w so work on that not 500w each. And you wont get that real world unless perfect orientation (facing and pitch)

Honestly though I think houses with them are going to be more valuable unless the prices plummet at some point
 
stuman said:
An energy tariff based on daily amount used could be useful for getting people to reduce overall usage - 1kwh free, 2-5 costs 5p, 5-10 7.5p etc etc

Could encourage lower usage

You could also
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I suspect ultimately we will see this when EV is main form of transport
Dont forget demand pricing as well though to encourage useage when there is excess and less when we are short
 
Solar panels aren't a permanent fixture though, they only last about 20 years and then need replacing as they degrade. They won't add much to the house value.
 
I think (as long as its run properly) nationalising EDF was a great move. Not much more you can do.

Messing around with over taxing, that money going back to the producers etc is just tickling the problem.
 
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