UK homes to pay the price for growing dependance on foreign gas

New analysis from the Energy & Climate Intelligence Unit has warned that UK gas households can expect to pay £5,700 for foreign gas over the next 12 years as North Sea production continues to fall.

Read the report: RISING GAS IMPORTS AND THE UK’S BALANCE OF TRADE

The new study from the ECIU argues that the UK government should have a more ambitious set of policies to deploy insulation, heat pumps, and British renewables to reduce gas demand for heating and power generation, potentially cutting UK gas imports by 55 per cent by 2035.

Analysis showed a typical UK household with a gas boiler would be paying £500 a year to overseas gas producers in 2035, five times the level before the gas crisis.

In contrast, a net zero home with an electric heat pump, better insulation and solar PV panels would be spending less than £100 on imported gas in 2035.

The UK currently imports around half the gas it uses, but this figure could rise to 85 per cent by 2035 without taking action.

Dr Simon Cran-McGreehin, head of analysis at ECIU, said: “You can’t squeeze much more out of the North Sea; its output has been declining and the official numbers show that’s going to continue. It’s simply running out of gas.

“Those arguing against heat pumps are arguing for UK homes being more dependent on foreign gas. The government has some of the right targets for UK energy independence, but not the policies to deliver on them.”

The report concludes: “Net zero homes would become the norm if the government choose an accelerated move away from gas. A decarbonised power system would leave these net zero homes with virtually no gas demand, and even smaller gas imports. And lower gas demand would also have benefits for the UK’s national balance sheet, with lower gas imports helping to limit our balance of trade deficit.

“However, the UK risks missing the opportunity to change course towards lower gas demand, because the government is not seeking to keep pace in the global race to attract net zero investment. This poses the very real risk that the UK remains locked into unnecessarily high gas imports, as North Sea gas output unavoidably declines.”