The Cost of So-Called Carbon-Cutting Programs and Cap and Trade (ACES)

Hi Guys,

I hope that you have had a good day.

We are faced with crumbling and old infrastructure. A lack of real investment in new technology and new generations of power stations has created a reduction in countries such as the United Kingdom being able to meet its energy (electricity) needs.

The need to make a quick buck has not helped either. Investors no longer invested in statutory undertaker to make a small but steady profit but tried to maximize their returns while minimizing their outlay or investment. Boards of directors and compliant management with the lure of stock options were only too eager to jump onto the bandwagon.

There is no “duty of supply” placed upon the electricity generating companies and as the government and regulator do not themselves generate electricity, they are not in a position to deliver security of supply.

This has meant that, for instance, the closure of older nuclear power stations is put on hold i.e. the 1,250MW Torness nuclear power station is currently set for 2023, but its operator, British Energy, is already talking about an extension to its operating life.

This means that beyond 2010, further new generating capacity and/or energy efficiency measures will be required to ensure that generating capacity can meet demand.

The United Kingdom imports/exports electricity from France through a 2GW high voltage direct current link under the English Channel. In 2004 the UK imported 9,784 GWh of electricity and exported 2,294 GWh.

There is also a 500 MW connection between Scotland and Northern Ireland and a 600 MW connection between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Although renewable energy has been around for quite a while, its prohibitive price tag stopped us from moving forwards in the past. In 2004 3.6% of all electricity generated in the UK came from renewable energy of which 12.25% came from onshore wind farms, 1,4% from offshore wind farms and only 0.03% from photovoltaic cells. And let us not forget the necessary backup gas and oil turbines being constantly throttled up and down to counter losses and gains from wind turbines in order to balance the UK’s energy requirement.

Interestingly enough the ‘world’s leading solar power generator’ is not in sun soaked regions such as California or southern Spain. It would probably surprise you to learn that that title goes to a country whose climate is not exactly famed for its blazing sunshine and one which is not so different to Britain’s: Germany.

Over 300,000 photovoltaic systems are installed in Germany, generating 200 times as much solar energy as Britain. Within four to five years, Germany will generate as much of its electricity from solar power as the United Kingdom currently generate from nuclear (around 20%).

So while Germany actually does something concrete about renewable energy the United Kingdom’s government effectively helps the climate-industrial complex “steals” yet more money from captive consumers through steep gas and electricity prices.

In the United States the picture is just as bad. When the American Clean Energy Security act (ACES) passes it will cost the average American family $1,241 per year because as the Wall Street Journal put it, “the whole point of cap and trade is to hike the price of electricity and gas so that Americans will use less. The effect of ACES will show up not just in electricity bills or at the gas station but in every manufactured good, from food to cars.

An analysis carried out in Britain found that the average UK family is paying nearly $1,300 a year for the so-called carbon-cutting programs introduced there just a few years ago.

So, instead of pushing solar energy and helping home owners generate their own electricity the general idea both in the USA and the UK is to hike the price of electricity and gas to try to get you to use less energy. I think that this is contemptuous when those pushing these policies know that ultimately the cost of these policies will be passed onto the consumers in one way or another and that reductions in consumer spending will ultimately mean a decline in production and lead to the loss of jobs.

Now is the time to start protecting yourself against the climate-industrial complex by generating your own power at home with solar and wind energy to reduce or eliminate your power bill. Get our complete guide at DIY Power System

As always, I wish you everything I wish myself.

Until the next time.

Alain

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