EMR Explained Update 1 npower Pulse report on businesses views of Electricity Market Reform August/September 2013
01 02 EMR explained overview Executive summary npower has been giving businesses a voice in the debate around Electricity Market Reform (EMR) since it was first proposed in 2010. We launched our EMR Explained initiative in 2013 to help keep businesses informed on the latest developments around Electricity Market Reform (EMR) and, in particular, how it will impact on their organisations. We believe an important part of collaborating with companies on EMR is listening to their views and then feeding those back to Government to ensure their voice is heard. As a result, we have created the EMR Pulse, an online survey designed to give businesses a quick and simple way to air their views on EMR. This EMR Explained Update is designed to share the results of the first edition of EMR Pulse. Each edition will chart businesses baseline awareness and understanding of EMR, as well as their views on a special topic. For the first EMR Pulse, this special topic was the Government s consultation on proposals to exempt the most electricity intensive industries from a proportion of the costs of Contracts for Difference a key component of EMR. We incorporated the results into our consultation response to Government on behalf of businesses ahead of the Contracts for Difference consultation deadline on 30th August 2013. Three quarters (75%) of UK businesses are worried about the impact Electricity Market Reform (EMR) will have on their business. However, despite the fact that EMR will affect all energy consumers, 15% of businesses have no awareness of EMR at all, or don t think it will impact them. The research found that of those businesses which are concerned about how EMR will impact them, cost is at the forefront of their mind. Nearly all businesses (97%) are worried about how the legislation will affect the cost of their energy and 91% are worried about the ability to forecast costs. Further to this and linked to financial concerns, 86% of businesses highlighted the impact on UK competitiveness as an area of uncertainty. Contracts for Difference Businesses also submitted their views regarding the Government consultation into how to exempt the most electricity-intensive Energy Intensive Industries (EIIs) from a proportion of the costs of CfDs. Close to half of those surveyed (46%) think that Option 1b, the reduced exemption level, is the preferred option for CfD exemption eligibility. A third (33%) of businesses also feel the Contracts for Difference exemption should be set at 100% of costs to deal with competitiveness issues. We hope you find this EMR Explained Update useful and thought-provoking. To find out more about npower s EMR Explained initiative please visit: bit.ly/emrexplained or if you have any comments or would like to share your views, don t hesitate to get in touch. Wayne Mitchell Industrial & Commercial Sales & Marketing Director, npower business@npower.com
EMR Pulse Dashboard 04 Key findings Baseline EMR awareness How aware are you of Electricity Market Reform? How aware are you of the main elements of EMR? Electricity Market Reform Contracts For Difference Electricity Market Reform (EMR) is the Government s initiative to make sure the UK remains a leading destination for investment in low-carbon electricity. Capacity Mechanism A market-wide mechanism designed to ensure adequate, reliable power generation capacity is in place to meet peak demand. 3% EMR does not affect my business Aware but would like to know more 71% 12% Not aware 14% Fully aware 17% 62% 22% Capacity Mechanism 11% 55% 34% Carbon Price Floor 20% 57% 20% 3% Fully aware Aware, like to know more Not aware N/A The main elements of EMR are: Contracts For Difference (CfD) These guarantee a fixed total price for electricity generated by low carbon generators to guarantee a return and hence enable investment. The strike price set varies according to each generation type. Carbon Price Floor (CPF) A tax on carbon emissions from electricity generators in addition to the EU ETS carbon cost. The CPF came into effect on 1 April 2013 and is designed to provide an incentive to invest in low-carbon power generation. Emission Performance Standard (EPS) A clearly defined set of emission levels for new power stations designed to prevent investment in unabated carbon intensive power stations (ie. coal without Carbon Capture and Storage). The Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) intends for EMR to be operational by mid-2014, when CfD (Q3 2014) will be available and the first capacity auction will be held (Q4 2014). The costs of implementing EMR will impact on all energy consumers, including businesses, but how much do they know about it? Awareness of EMR Sources of information on EMR The impact of EMR I understand how Electricity Market Reform will impact on my business How concerned are you about the impact of EMR? Businesses top five concerns on the impact of EMR are: 97% Cost of energy 46% 75% 75% 91% The ability to forecast costs I am concerned about the impact Electricity Market Reform will have on my business 86% UK competitiveness I need additional information and support to manage the impact of EMR on my business 83% Administrative burden on the business 77% Impact on investing in energy strategy Awareness levels are generally good, with 14% of businesses saying they are fully aware of EMR and 71% saying they are aware but would like to know more. However, just over one in 10 energy managers (12%) are not aware of EMR and 3% believe EMR does not affect their business. Those with the highest level of awareness of EMR have responsibility for on-site generation (94%), followed by those responsible for procurement (89%) and energy monitoring (81%). Those with responsibility for energy efficiency (77%) have the lowest level of awareness. One in five (22%) of those responsible for on-site generation said they were fully aware of EMR - the highest of any group. Awareness of the main elements of EMR More than three quarters of businesses are aware of Contracts for Difference (78%) and Carbon Price Floor (77%), but close to two thirds of this number wish to know more about the schemes 62% want to know more about Contracts for Difference and 57% want to know more about Carbon Price Floor. The element of EMR that respondents are least aware of is the Capacity Mechanism (34%). Businesses are aware of EMR from a wide range of sources. The top three sources of information are: 1. Energy supplier (42%) 2. DECC (37%) 3. Industry body (28%) 31% of businesses said they don t receive information on EMR from any source. The impact of EMR Close to half of businesses (46%) understand how EMR will impact on their business and three quarters (75%) are concerned about this impact. Three quarters (75%) would like additional information and support to help them manage the impact of EMR on their business. Businesses top five concerns on the impact of EMR are: 1. Cost of energy (97%) 2. The ability to forecast costs (91%) 3. UK competitiveness (86%) 4. Administrative burden on the business (83%) 5. It will impact on their business investing in its energy strategy (77%)
05 06 Key findings Special topic Contracts for Difference npower and EMR About Contracts for Difference (cost exemption) Contracts for Difference (CfD) is a mechanism designed to encourage investment in low carbon generation, however this will have a further cost impact on organisations. As a result, the Government is proposing to exempt the most electricity-intensive Energy Intensive Industries (EIIs) from a proportion of the costs of CfDs. Its aim is to level the playing field so that EIIs are not made uncompetitive due to the costs of this policy. Through the EMR Pulse we surveyed businesses views on this consultation and fed back the findings to Government as part of npower s response to the consultation ahead of the deadline on 30th August 2013. Consultation principles 70% of businesses agree with the consultation principles that have been set out to help evaluate the exemption eligibility options. Preferred option Option 1b, the reduced exemption level, is the top choice for businesses, with 46% choosing this as their preferred option. Businesses chose their preferred options as follows: 12% 15% Respondents listed the main advantages and disadvantages as follows: Option 1a: Compensation mirror 46% Option 1b: Reduced exemption level Option 2a: Eligibility wider than ETS/CPS Option 2b: Compensation plus a taper for additional sectors 27% Advantages Relatively simple mechanism Helps to keep EIIs competitive Preferred level of exemption Taking into account all of the consultation principles, which is your preferred option? Relatively simple mechanism Option 1a: Compensation mirror Option 1b: Reduced exemption level Option 2a: Eligibility wider than ETS/CPS Option 2b: Compensation plus a taper for additional sectors Could help drive energy efficiency measures, less cost to other consumers Will promote energy efficiency to bridge shortfall Potentially more sectors helped More reflective of competitiveness concerns to a wider range of sectors Disadvantages Widens the divergence between sectors who are deemed eligible for exemption as compared to those sectors that are not Costs impact all other consumers Reduced level of competitiveness protection Relatively complex mechanism A greater competitiveness risk, and also the highest impact on all other consumers Relatively complex mechanism Has in effect double cliff-edge and still a relatively high cost to other consumers Least likely to receive state aid, thereby introduces unnecessary risk In npower s Industrial and Commercial (I&C) Markets division we are passionate about giving businesses a voice on key legislation and have been doing just this in the debate around Electricity Market Reform (EMR) since it was first proposed in 2010. As well as collaborating with our customers to ensure their views on EMR are heard, we are committed to educating businesses on the wider energy market and about all aspects of legislation and policy. To date, we have hosted three customer/stakeholder roundtables, conducted our own consultation to ensure time-poor businesses had their say during the process, and presented the findings to Government at every stage. The npower policy team sits at the heart of this activity. You can read npower s latest EMR report UK Business speaks: A call for clarity here bit.ly/emrreport At npower it s vital that we not only help businesses to understand policy and how it affects them but also that we develop innovative products and solutions to mitigate its impact and help businesses to take better control of their energy. About npower npower is one of the top energy suppliers to the UK business market, serving over 238,000 small to medium sized enterprise sites and around 17,000 industrial and commercial customers with over 100,000 sites. npower Industrial and Commercial Markets is an award-winning business energy supplier. In 2010 it was named The Consumer Supplier of the Year at The Energy Event and was also awarded Energy Supplier of the Year at the inaugural Energy Awards. Both awards were voted for by business customers. In 2012 npower won the Risk Product or Service of the Year at The Energy Awards for the second year in a row. The business is dedicated to helping UK organisations use energy more efficiently and to therefore spend less money on their bills. npower specialises in risk management solutions, including market-leading flexible energy purchasing, energy RWE, npower s parent company, participates in all of DECC s Expert Groups for EMR, including the groups responsible for inputting into the design of the Capacity Mechanism and Contracts for Difference. This provides the opportunity for npower to understand first-hand the latest Government thinking. A third (33%) of businesses that took part in the consultation feel the Contracts for Difference exemption should be set at 100% of costs to deal with competitiveness issues. One fifth (22%) felt that the exemption should be set at 80%, one fifth (22%) at 50% and one fifth (22%) at 25%. Impact of redistributive cost impact 54% of businesses anticipate that the redistributive cost impact of any of the options will cause their household or business difficulties. However, 36% did not know what the effects would be.
How to get in touch with npower If you would like further information on EMR or to discuss your specific requirements, please email business@npower.com You can also keep up to date with npower I&C on social media: Read our weekly blog from Wayne Mitchell and other guest bloggers at npower.com Follow @npowerbusiness on Twitter npower is a registered trademark and a trading name of Npower Limited (registered in England and Wales No. 3653277) and Npower Commercial Gas Limited (registered in England and Wales No. 3768856) and associated companies. Registered Office: Windmill Hill Business Park, Whitehill Way, Swindon, SN5 6PB.