Utility Week

4 | 18TH - 24TH JANUARY 2019 | UTILITY WEEK Seven days... Germany to end lignite use for good of climate Germany has mined and burnt lignite, or brown coal, for hundreds of years and has the physical scars to show for it. From the Rhineland in the west to the Lausitz in the east, the landscape is pockmarked by vast open-pit mines, empty save for colossal excavators burrowing ever deeper into the ground. But a government-appointed task force is set on 1 February to release a plan on ending the use of lignite, in a crucial decision for Germany's energy industry and its standing in the fight against climate change. Financial Times, 14 January Third-warmest year on record for Australia Australia had its third-warmest year on record in 2018, a year marked by severe drought in parts of the country and a prolonged bushfire season, the Bureau of Meteorol- ogy said, with the dry conditions expected to persist. Maximum tem- peratures across Australia were the second-warmest on record at 1.55C (2.8F) above average, just behind the hottest year in 2013. The aver- age temperature across Australia in 2018 was 1.14C above the average for 1961 to 1990, making nine of the past ten years hotter than average, the bureau said in its annual climate statement. Reuters, 9 January 21 miners die in China coal mine collapse At least 21 people have been killed aer the roof of a coal mine col- lapsed in northern China. A total of 87 workers were underground in the Shaanxi province mine at the time of the accident on Saturday aernoon, the official news agency Xinhua reported. Sixty-six of those have been safely evacuated, the city government said. The cause of the accident at the site, run by Baiji Mining, is under investigation. Sky News, 13 January STORY BY NUMBERS National media Ofgem consults on tougher tests for new suppliers O fgem plans to tighten controls on how suppliers handle customers' balances this year and is explor- ing moves to extend regulation to energy intermediaries, its chair has said. In the keynote speech at the regulator's "Energy of the Future" conference in London on 10 January, Martin Cave said Ofgem was already consulting on introducing customer service and financial tests for new sup- pliers. He also said the regulator would be consulting this year on further changes to the licensing regime for suppliers, which has been placed in the spotlight by the failure of a string of energy companies in recent months. Cave said the upcoming con- sultation would cover the way suppliers accrue, hold and use customers' credit balances. It would include how suppli- ers make the payments they owe under the Renewables Obliga- tion scheme. He said: "Arguably too many suppliers have come into the market with unsustainable business models. "We want competition to lead to sustainable and 'everyday' low prices – not rate-chasing churn where customers have to switch every year to avoid a massive hike in prices. "We want to see greater com- petition driving up the quality of customer service – but with a reliable minimum standard. "And we want all suppliers to pay their way." Cave told delegates that the regulator must decide whether it was "appropriate" that interme- diaries, many of whom operate in other sectors besides energy, are largely unregulated. Other issues the regulator would address include removing the restrictions that mean energy can only be sold by the kilowatt- hour, enabling customers to contract with multiple suppliers and the obligation on suppliers to supply any customer. He said that the regulator's priorities for the future regula- tion of the retail market must include ensuring that new con- sumer protections reflect market changes and the risks posed by new services and market players. DB Smart meter progress report The BEIS select committee carried out a one-off hearing on 9 January into the recently published National Audit Office report on the smart meter programme. 70% Energy minister Claire Perry insisted that smart meters will be installed in 70 per cent of households by the end of next year, despite widespread doubts about the pace of the rollout. 12.8m Number of smart meters installed, equating to a quarter of all households. 1.8m To meet a 70 per cent penetration would require 1.8 million installa- tions a year. 260,000 Number of SMETS2 devices installed. "The price cap was meant to be a maximum, not a target" Hayden Wood, co-founder and chief executive of Bulb, says it's disappointing to see larger suppliers setting their tariffs so close to the price cap ceiling and he accused them of "squeezing every last penny they can out of families".

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