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In 2022, businesses have suffered through the high prices of electricity. Although some of the gas prices have seemingly dropped, the rise in 2023 is still happening. For businesses to continue their operations, owners can use an energy comparison website to help find cheaper energy prices. Let’s look into the energy trends that have been forecasted for the year 2023.
Energy Trends for Businesses 2023
With prices rising in 2023, the best thing for businesses is to be on a fixed-rate contract.
According to the regulation of the government, the state supports businesses that are on a fixed rate and will cap the electricity bill at 21.1 p/kWh and the bill for gas at 7.5 p/kWh. Ensuring that the business is not impacted by the rise in utility prices.
If your business is not on a fixed rate and rather on a variable tariff then the government only regulates that your business gets a maximum discount on the total bill. This is the difference between the maximum discount and the wholesale rate.
The maximum discount for electricity that will be covered is 34.5 p/kwh and for gas 9.1 p/kWh.
If your business is on a variable rate, your business energy rates will increase as the tariff increases.
With the increase in energy efficiency, the UK government has tried to regulate the price of renewable energy generators to make the switch to fixed contracts to help curb the costs of renewable electricity to companies.
Since the hydrocarbon prices have resulted in the electricity increase, there has also been a tax regulated on oil and gas companies’ profits that has been added to the cost of renewable electricity generators. This is especially for those above a threshold of £75/MWh.
The UK government has also made it known that they would invest in nuclear power which accumulated to £700mn to the Sizewell C Nuclear Power Station and will now become 50% owned by the government.
Introducing New Technologies
With the rise of energy efficiency, new renewable energies will also be introduced, especially hydrogen and battery energy storage systems also known as BESS.
Although BESS projects are still under development, there are also other changes made to the use of hydrogen to decarbonise the energy system. The government plans to double the amount of hydrogen production to help prevent the high costs of electricity.
Efficient Energy Sources
When compared to coal, solar and wind, and natural gas nuclear power is the most efficient energy source.
This means that a typical nuclear plant can produce one gigawatt of electricity but the same amount of electricity would need three coal-fired plants.
Using energy sources like solar and wind do produce clean energy but would need huge storage space to ensure that this energy would be constantly available.
Making the switch to renewable energy is costly as infrastructure and storage facilities would need a large amount of money invested.
The transition is to move away from fossil fuel energy and these are the three main driving forces:
- Electrification – This is the rise of electric vehicles and the decision to stop manufacturing cars that have petrol engines.
- Rise in fossil fuel prices and the impact on the environment – As a result of the U.S. government energy policies, the Ukraine war, and the OPEC production policies, the UK government fears that having/needing resources could lead to energy blackmail.
- Energy Efficiency – Since the increase in the cost of living, people have to find options that are less wasteful and won’t cost them more than what they use.
Energy Trends To Watch For In 2023:
Green Hydrogen Energy
Hydrogen generated from low-carbon power or renewable energy. This type of hydrogen will help cut down carbon footprints so that countries can reach their net zero emission policies which they have put into place to help stop the damage to the environment.
AI and Big Data in the Energy Industry
Introducing the use of smart meters and smart grids where AI has control over the regulation of electricity and water usage and distribution.
This technology has allowed for electric cars to be manufactured running solely on rechargeable battery power instead of using petrol.
Decarbonisation
Businesses reduce their carbon footprint.
Shift to Renewable Energy Resources
Using sources such as wind energy, solar energy, hydrogen, hydropower, Marine Energy and Bioenergy.
Sustainable Biomass
Utilising organic matter such as wood, to generate energy.
Conclusion
New energy generation methods have been rising to the surface with businesses changing their traditional practices to make their manufacturing processes newer energy-efficient ways.
These energy trends listed above have both been sought out and tried and have been proven to work to ensure that companies save money and costs on manufacturing and the energy bill.
Making the shift can help businesses become more sustainable.
