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UTILITY WEEK | 1ST - 7TH SEPTEMBER 2017 | 5 A total solar eclipse swept across the US from Lincoln Beach, Oregon, to Charleston, South Carolina, on Monday 21 August. A partial solar eclipse was visible across the entire North American continent along with parts of South America, Africa and Europe. The eclipse was tracked by a company called SolarEdge, which used a monitoring platform with nearly 300,000 solar systems. As the moon blocked the sun, the amount of energy produced by the photovoltaic panels fell, allowing the firm to monitor the eclipse's path across the US. The colour correlates to strength of solar energy generation. ENERGY Blockchain 'could rebuild consumer trust' Emerging technologies could help rebuild trust between customers and under-fire energy suppliers, according to blockchain company Electron. Speaking to Utility Week, chief operating officer JoJo Hubbard said figures published by price comparison company Uswitch claiming 1.3 million energy customers had been overcharged was "another example of energy suppliers failing their customers due to inadequate service and systems". Research by Uswitch published in August showed customers had been overcharged by a total of £102 million over the past 12 months – the equivalent of more than £79 each – because of billing errors. "We are seeking to engage customers in optimising the new distributed energy market, while in practice most of our engaged consumers are chasing down incorrect bills," Hubbard said. said they had never switched 33 93 Utility Week research has found that financial savings remain the biggest driver for customers switching energy supplier. Eighty-seven per cent of respondents to a survey conducted by Utility Week, in association with Harris Interactive, said they were happy with their current supplier, and 33 per cent said they had never switched. Of those who had switched, 80 per cent said being able to save money was their motivation, while just 6 per cent were motivated by the desire to get a smart meter installed. Photo: SolarEdge £90 Amount by which average annual household electricity bills could rise after Brexit if less efficient Chinese appliances flood the market, according to the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit. "We need this additional insecurity like we need a hole in the head" Marcus Franck, founder of renewables start-up Franck Energy, on the sale of the Green Investment Bank to a consortium of investors led by Macquarie.