Bulb Energy has gone pop

[Richard_C]

I'm well aware of that, but to advertise that the electricity you're using is 100% renewable is bollix.

Well I've got a special electric meter that looks at every over excited electron as it comes down the line and only lets the green electrons into my house. Black ones from oil get thrown away and grey ones from gas get sent back. At least I think that's what the salesman said .......

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Yes, Jacob must have one of them as well.

 

[Jacob]

Yes, Jacob must have one of them as well.

Yes I realise it's difficult to understand for some people!
I wondered about an analogy - suppose you had a 4 horse power vehicle of which 1HP was supplied by an actual horse? Would that help? I guess not.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I wouldn't pay for four horses, then.

 

[Jacob]

I wouldn't pay for four horses, then.

You could finance all the costs of the horse and thereby place a contractual obligation on the driver to actually use a horse. Simple really!

 

[Jacob]

Bulb	1.7 million	In Special Administration
November 2021	Neon Reef	30,000	British Gas
November 2021	Social Energy	5,500	British Gas
November 2021	CNG	41,000	Pozitive Energy
November 2021	Zebra Power	14,800	British Gas
November 2021	Omni Energy	6,000	Utilita
November 2021	Ampoweruk Limited	2,600	Yü Energy
November 2021	MA Energy	300	SmartestEnergy Business
November 2021	Bluegreen Energy	5,900	British Gas
October 2021	GOTO Energy

October 2021	Daligas	9,000	Shell Energy
October 2021	Pure Planet	235,000	Shell Energy
October 2021	Colorado Energy	15,000	Shell Energy
September 2021	Symbio	50,000	E.ON Next
September 2021	Igloo	180,000	E.ON Next
September 2021	Enstroga	6,000	E.ON Next
September 2021	Green	350,000	Shell Energy
September 2021	Avro	600,000	Octopus
September 2021	People's Energy	350,000	British Gas
September 2021	Utility Point	200,000	EDF

September 2021	PFP Energy	80,000	British Gas
September 2021	Moneyplus Energy	9000	British Gas
August 2021	HUB Energy	15,000	Eon Next
January 2021	Simplicity Energy	50,000	British Gas Evolve
January 2021	Green Network Energy	367,500	EDF
December 2020	Yorkshire Energy	74,000	Scottish Power
October 2020	Tonik Energy	130,000	Scottish Power
September 2020	Effortless Energy	2,500	Octopus
March 2020	Gnergy	9,000	Bulb
December 2019	Breeze	18,000	British Gas

October 2019	Toto	134,000	EDF
October 2019	Uttily (Rutherford)	280	Total gas and power
September 2019	Eversmart	29,000	Utilita
August 2019	Solarplicity	8,000	EDF
August 2019	Cardiff Energy Supply Ltd	800	SSE
March 2019	Brilliant	17,000	SSE (currently SSE OVO)
January 2019	Our Power	32,000	Utilita
January 2019	Economy Energy	237,000	OVO
December 2018	One Select	33,000	Together Energy
November 2018	Spark Energy	290,000	OVO

November 2018	Extra Energy	108,000	Scottish Power
October 2018	Usio Energy	7,255	First Utility (currently Shell)
July 2018	Iresa Energy	95,000	Octopus Energy
July 2018	UK National Gas	80	Hudson Energy
January 2018	Future Energy	10,000	Green Star Energy
November 2016	GB Energy	160,000	Coop Energy

I think they'd disagree with you.

That's an astonishing list of failed utility companies, and only the tip of the iceberg if you go back to when it kicked off - 1979 ish.
Imagine if they'd been mad enough to privatise the NHS! Given a bad winter, let alone Covid, we'd seriously be up S creek without a paddle!

 

[NickVanBeest]

Given a bad winter, let alone Covid, we'd seriously be up S creek without a paddle!

Aren't we already?

 

[Jacob]

Aren't we already?

Yes but I was trying to be ironic. Privatised test and trace went down well!

 

[HamsterJam]

I gather green electricity not only comes from wind, solar and hydro but somewhat controversially also power stations burning biomass - Apparently we import a lot of wood pellets from Canada and there is some debate just how green this energy is.
As for energy companies going bust, I’m afraid to say I’m part of the problem. For many years I’ve been switching regularly from fixed rate deal to fixed rate deal and my present supplier is likely supplying me at a loss. I’m expecting a big hike in my bill when either my supplier goes to the wall or my fixed rate ends in March.

 

[Jacob]

I gather green electricity not only comes from wind, solar and hydro but somewhat controversially also power stations burning biomass - Apparently we import a lot of wood pellets from Canada and there is some debate just how green this energy is.
As for energy companies going bust, I’m afraid to say I’m part of the problem. For many years I’ve been switching regularly from fixed rate deal to fixed rate deal and my present supplier is likely supplying me at a loss. I’m expecting a big hike in my bill when either my supplier goes to the wall or my fixed rate ends in March.

Yes biomass is not good. Good in principle but bad in practice. Debunking the Biomass Myth
But burning wood waste which would otherwise go to land fill is carbon neutral ish, so I'm OK with my woodburner! Just direct room heat, no complicated systems

 

[Terry - Somerset]

Energy company failures are a product of poor management and poor regulation. Changes in the price of gas beyond the control of management or regulators is the catalyst.

Poor management - committing to sell energy on fixed price contracts without securing the cost base is risky. Easy to win customers with low prices as the costs of forward gas purchases to match future commitments is avoided.

Poor regulation - government appointed regulators either knew the risks the market faced and did nothing, or were caught unawares. They planned for occassional, not mass market, failure.

The life-boat solution of transferring customers of failed companies to another is no longer feasible. The big 6 (?) can't make a profit even on the capped variable tariff, so they will no longer play ball for the government.

The only question is the best way out of the hole now dug:

• tell customers of failed companies to sort out their own problems. Political suicide?
• directly subsidise energy companies to take on customers of failed companies. Not a Tory behaviour, very transparent, easily ridiculed by the opposition.
• sue directors of the failed companies. Not a quick fix. Could be protracted and ultimately ineffective, and directors may not have enough assets anyway.
• take over the failed business and run it until current obligations are fulfilled.

Probably the least worst option is the last - customers are left no worse off, the costs to the taxpayer are more opaque.

 

[Jacob]

.....

• take over the failed business and run it until current obligations are fulfilled.

Probably the least worst option is the last - customers are left no worse off, the costs to the taxpayer are more opaque.

a.k.a. "nationalisation"

 

[woodieallen]

Energy company failures are a product of poor management and poor regulation. Changes in the price of gas beyond the control of management or regulators is the catalyst.

...

Not as simplistic as that. Basically a lot of the smaller companies were effectively running a Ponzi scheme. Plus they were not mandated to hedge against future price rises in generating costs.


OOOOps...you covered that Poor regulation.

 

[DBT85]

a.k.a. "nationalisation"

Careful Jacob, we'll all get free tickets to Peppa Pig if we just tow the line.

 

[Jonm]

Yes biomass is not good. Good in principle but bad in practice. Debunking the Biomass Myth
But burning wood waste which would otherwise go to land fill is carbon neutral ish, so I'm OK with my woodburner! Just direct room heat, no complicated systems

Fundamentally the increase in carbon compounds in the atmosphere is caused by burning fossil fuels ie taking carbon locked deep in the ground and putting it in to the atmosphere. Biomass is not that and one of the ways of reducing carbon in the atmosphere would be biomass with carbon capture.

If biomass is intrinsically bad for climate change I would need more convincing than the statement “ A plethora of recent scientific articles and studies have demolished this myth”.

It may be that biomass as currently implemented has environmentally damaging effects, but that is not the same as saying it creates climate change. If biomass is causing deforestation there may be a case but that is implementation. Given the sky high timber prices it seems likely to me that the Canadians are chopping down trees for timber and the wood pellets are a by product. Perhaps the wood pellets should be stacked up and allowed to rot and produce methane.

Fundamentally we have to work out how we stop using coal, oil and natural gas and do it PDQ.

 

[AlanY]

It is 100% if you are paying 100% of the actual cost of green energy, effectively, to all intents and purposes.

No, it is not. The energy you use could have been generated via green, nuclear or fossil-burning sources. What makes tariffs 'green' is the commitment by the suppliers to replace every electron you use with an electron generated from a 'green' source. Clearly, when the sun does not shine or the wind does not blow and fossil generation is more heavily relied upon, what you use will contain a proportionally higher amount of 'dirty' energy and that may not be immediately replaced by luvvy-dovey, 'green' electricity. So, a supplier saying they only supply 'green' electricity is more of an aspiration than a fact.

And nobody being supplied on a 'green' tariff is paying the 'actual cost of green energy'. If that were true it would not be necessary to include a 'green' levy on every energy customer's bill regardless of where their electricity is generated. Renewable energy remains a subsidised commodity.

 

[Jacob]

Fundamentally the increase in carbon compounds in the atmosphere is caused by burning fossil fuels ie taking carbon locked deep in the ground and putting it in to the atmosphere. Biomass is not that and one of the ways of reducing carbon in the atmosphere would be biomass with carbon capture.

Carbon capture is a pipe dream and is unlikely ever to be practical

If biomass is intrinsically bad for climate change I would need more convincing than the statement “ A plethora of recent scientific articles and studies have demolished this myth”.

Surely you should read a few of these articles first before dismissing them!

It may be that biomass as currently implemented has environmentally damaging effects, but that is not the same as saying it creates climate change.

Read a few of the articles

Fundamentally we have to work out how we stop using coal, oil and natural gas and do it PDQ.

Agree.
https://www.google.com/search?q=is+...0l2j0i390l2.4785j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8https://www.climate2020.org.uk/how-clean-is-biomass/

 

[Jacob]

No, it is not. The energy you use could have been generated via green, nuclear or fossil-burning sources. What makes tariffs 'green' is the commitment by the suppliers to replace every electron you use with an electron generated from a 'green' source. .....

Amounts to the same thing

 

[AlanY]

Amounts to the same thing

Not if they do not actually do it.

 

[Jacob]

Not if they do not actually do it.

Well yes but I assume they are actually doing something along those lines otherwise it's a fraud. Could be wrong!