UK major energy users demand action on prices
Energy Intensive Users Group (EIUG), a UK lobbying group for manufacturers, on September 17 called for government and regulatory action to "maintain the international competitiveness of a key economic sector."
UK fertilizer and steel manufacturers mid-September had already responded to the higher energy prices by cutting their output.
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In an open letter, the new EIUG chairman Richard Leese said the government must set out plans to address the impact of recent energy price increases on energy intensive industries, learn from examples in other countries and ensure security of supply over the winter.
Calling the prices exorbitant, he said the UK was paying more than its international competitors for energy. He said today's high prices should be a "wake-up call" for Ofgem and the government, adding that the government should ask Ofgem, the nation’s natural gas regulator, to probe the disparity between the prices paid in the UK and those paid by their "near" competitors.
Leese also said Ofgem should assess as a matter of urgency both the existing market operation and the behaviour of generators, as well as its emergency response plans and the use of energy import infrastructure.