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UtILItY WeeK | 24th - 30th OctOber 2014 | 5 The retirements of two directors at Severn Trent have sparked a restructuring of Severn Trent's board. Severn Trent will reduce the number of board members from eleven directors to eight – comprising two executive directors and six non-executive directors – with effect from 23 January 2015, to "further drive the effectiveness of the board". Chief finance officer Mike McKeon and Richard Davey, chairman of the remuneration committee, both retire in spring 2015. Tony Ballance, Martin Kane and Andy Smith will no longer be executive directors of Severn Trent, but will remain as members of the Severn Trent executive committee and retain their current executive responsibilities as director of strategy and regulation, chief engineer and managing director of business services, respectively. James Bowling, who is currently the interim chief finan- cial officer of biopharmaceutical company Shire, has been named as McKeon's successor. Martin Lamb, non-executive director, will succeed Davey as the senior independent director, and Philip Remnant, also a non-executive director, will succeed him in the role of chairman of the remuneration committee. WAter Retirements at Severn spark board restructure Consumers are paying about £410 more a year for their energy compared with a decade ago despite using less, a report by Which? claims. Data from the consumer watchdog's Fair Energy Prices campaign shows yearly spend on energy rose by 52 per cent (aer inflation), from £790 in 2003/04 to £1,200 in 2012. This is despite energy use by consumers falling 17 per cent over the same period. The price of gas and electricity increased by an average 137 per cent since 2003/04, outstripping inflation of 27 per cent. Over the same period, water costs rose 62 per cent and food 42 per cent, the report said. More customers switching away from the big six -20% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 120% 140% 160% Plans to power Europe with solar generation from the Sahara were revived this week after Tunisian consortium Tunur confirmed plans to bid for funding through the UK government's contracts for difference (CfD) scheme. The project picks up where previous trailblazers at Desertec failed, with plans to build a 2GW solar farm in Tunisia and export the electricity via HVDC transmission lines across the Strait of Sicily to Italy, where it would enter the European power system. "The project will contribute significantly to the decarbonisation of the European grid by opening a new energy corridor between North Africa and Europe," Tunur said. Gas and electricity Petrol and oil Fares and travel Tobacco Water and other charges Food CPI overall Rent Alcohol Recreation Jan 2015 From next year, farmers will no longer receive subsidies for having solar farms on their land, under new rules put forward by Defra 30% Proportion of consumers who find their energy bills easy to understand, according to an independent study conducted for uSwitch.com Change in prices for selected items between 2003-2012 (source: ONS) 137% 80% 79% 67% 62% 42% 27% 27% 21% -2%