Bigger bills warning over fossil fuels

Household electricity bills could be pushed up by about £300 a year by 2020 as a result of a continued reliance on fossil fuels to provide energy, environmentalists claim.

Friends of the Earth hit back at claims that “green taxes” were causing energy bills to rise with a report which suggests that investment in fossil fuel plants rather than renewables would leave British households footing the bill for the increasing costs of coal and gas to make electricity.

The report said that if the Big Six energy companies were to abandon new renewable energy sources in favour of new fossil fuel plants in order to bridge the energy gap, householders would see bills rise.

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According to the report, electricity bills rose by 30 per cent in real terms between 2000 and 2010, while gas bills jumped 78 per cent, Friends of the Earth said.

If costs rise by the same amount in the coming decade, the UK would face an additional bill of £8bn a year by 2020 to generate electricity, costing the average householder an extra £300 compared with what would happen if the UK met its targets to boost renewables.

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