[SSM] Given the on-going energy price rises scandal, the £12 BILLION price tag for ‘$mart’ Meters is highly conspicuous by its absence from mainstream commentary. At a staggering cost of £400 for every household in Britain, Smart Meters will place a huge additional burden on the consumer.
Amongst all of the commotion, though, it’s not even given an honorable mention.
Even Stephen Fitzpatrick, the managing director of Ovo Energy, explained that price hikes were unjustified – telling MPs at the Select Committee hearing that wholesale prices were actually falling:
“I can’t explain any of these price rises… I have been somewhat confused by looking at the explanations for the price rises that we’ve seen in the past three or four weeks.”
With the lofty numbers involved, it seems bizarre that the Smart Meter programme was not tabled during the Select Committee theatrics. After all, it is entirely possible that Big Energy is actively taking steps to offset the costs for Smart Metering infrastructure by raising bills to you, the consumer – even if the you, the tax payer, are also very generously contributing to this lucrative scheme.
Maybe the reason for not mentioning the £12bn down-payment in Smart Meters is because it will generate serious upside for the consumer at the end of it… right?
Well, the UK Government has said that you might – with two Smart Meters – be able to save up to £23 p/a, per home. (The German Government, in contrast, has rejected Smart Meters because they foresaw NO savings).
So we are making a £400 investment for a £23 return each year – which is assuming, of course, that the savings will actually be passed back to you by these companies for the requisite 16 YEAR period (and not to institutional shareholders). And it is also assuming that you actually change your own behaviour to generate said savings. So there are no guarantees of any savings whatsoever.
If you are looking for additional ways to make energy savings, you could invest £15 (fifteen) right now in an energy monitor from Amazon. And if those pushing this programme really wanted you to make those savings, you probably would have had one of those inexpensive monitors shipped to you already – for a net saving of £385 per household (more if you take longer term costs of Smart Metering into account, such as servicing). £385 is a big saving and would keep a lot of people warm for quite some time.
Do the math.
By the time we have finished coughing up £12bn (and probably far more) for the next big Public Sector white elephant, up to 28m homes and 2m small business will have biologically harmful, remotely hackable, energy-sapping, spy meters in them, reporting on what the occupants are doing, 24 hours a day.
Who benefits?
[/]Consumer affairs group challenges Chancellor to scrap carbon floor price, review smart meter deployment, and reform ECO scheme
Two of the government’s flagship energy efficiency policies are facing fresh criticism today, after consumer affairs group Which? urged the coalition to fundamentally reform its energy strategy in order to hold down domestic energy bills.
In an open letter to Chancellor George Osborne, Which? executive director Richard Lloyd today calls on the government to use the upcoming Autumn Statement to commit to separating energy generation and supply operations, reform the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme to focus more on lower cost home improvements, and halt the government’s ambitious smart meter rollout. [emp. added]
… in a move that is bound to spark concern among the technology and energy companies currently preparing for the government’s national smart meter rollout, Which? claims the whole exercise should be halted. “It is a £12bn luxury we cannot currently afford,” the letter states.
Read the full story at Which? calls for halt to smart meter rollout- Businessgreen mobile.
The reason for the price rise could be quite simple:
to offset revenue losses caused by a rejection by the public of a smart metre roll-out, or
Losses in profits…
Yes, thanks, that’s what I meant.
Higher bills equals higher tax revenue. Is that why the Govt. passed legislation in July preventing you from reverting to analogue electric meters. Judging by the evidence provided on this very website no other country that has gone down the smart meter route has seen lower bills, quite the opposite in fact!
When are we going to have some people in government with some plain old common sense; instead of the self serving professional politicians we seem to end up with.
It is worth getting your objections and concerns about Smart Meters and the underhanded tactics deployed by those pushing them logged with your MP. They need to hear about what’s going on so do write if you have time – they might listen to you if your vote being withdrawn doesn’t serve their interests..
mmm – whose been lobbying?
Who stands to gain the most from such a roll out of these meters?
I have been looking at fracking and the piper calls the tune here…
Never mind the cost what about the health risks? Investigate for yourself and discover the horrendous health risks. They will need to take me to court before I would allow one of these on my property
These meters will offer no savings. all it will do is heavily favor the energy companies,giving them end to end control of your connection,and credit to prepayment option.
The price is going up and up,people have complained of installing new boilers and insulation and its been a waste of time,while good insulation is necessary,the fact is the boiler needs to be used to maintain heat.
and the Promise to the people when they sold us Nuclear Energy,
It will be too cheap to meter!
The most disgusting self-serving creatures to ever walk on Earth, they will not be satisfied until the Earth is dead and on that note our Politicians all around the world really are doing a great job! The House of Commons is officially devoid of any common sense, since all of the commons have been stolen and placed in Private hands.
Can anyone explain the Insanity of the decisions been made by these People? other than a very Real sickness they possess but refuse to acknowledge.
Looks like the long term objective is to be able to use smart meters as a tax collection device.
All ( or Windfull/ property / community ) your taxes collected / loaded to your meter. You want power ? Well, you’ll have to pay a portion of that in some form of enviro tax.
That’ll do nicely , thank you !
Didn’t Greece government recently impose a tax by slapping it onto everyone’s power ? You see what’s coming ?