Crisis Warning as UK Energy Costs Set to Soar

Electricity and gas futures prices have hit record levels for this winter and are set to land Britain with Europe’s biggest energy bill.

Household electricity bills could rise by almost a fifth over the next 12 months while industrial users face a massive 60 per cent increase, according to the energy information consultancy EIC.

Industrial companies such as the chemicals manufacturer Ineos Chlor, which uses 1 per cent of the electricity generated in the UK, and industry representatives such as the Energy Intensive Users Group will meet officials from the Department of Trade and Industry on Wednesday to warn of the looming energy crisis.

Without government intervention, companies that use a lot of energy will be forced to cut production and lay off staff this winter, they will say.
The Independent