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Prices hit a record 11.8 cents per residential kilowatt hour so far this year,

Electricity Prices Soar in United States and Elsewhere



Electric bills have skyrocketed in the last five years, a sharp reversal from a quarter-century ago when Americans enjoyed stable power bills even as they used more electricity, reports USA Today. (1)
Households paid a record $1,419 on average for electricity in 2010, the fifth consecutive yearly increase above the inflation rate. The jump has added about $300 a year to what households pay for electricity. That’s the largest sustained increase since a run-up in electricity prices during the 1970s. Prices hit a record 11.8 cents per residential kilowatt hour so far this year, reports the Energy Information Administration (EIA). The increase reflects higher fuel prices and the expense of replacing old power plants, including heavily polluting—but cheap to operate—coal plants that don’t meet federal clean air requirements. The USA Today article says greater electricity use at home and higher prices per kilowatt hour are both driving the higher cost, but doesn’t mention renewable electricity mandates. These are also causing increased energy costs while killing jobs in the states that have enacted them. Electricity prices are already nearly 40 percent higher in states with an REM (renewable electricity mandates). A recent study notes that 29 states have enacted renewable energy mandates and another seven have enacted renewable energy goals. The majority of states have proven unable to meet their mandates, and even the unmet mandates have raised electricity prices. (2).

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The United States isn’t the only place experiencing increased energy costs. Scotland announced plans to raise its gas price by 19 percent and its electricity tariffs by an inflation busting 10 percent. Spurred by the government’s commitment to renewable energy, so-called green stealth taxes are already adding 15-20 percent to the average domestic power bill and even more to business users says Benny Peiser. (3) In the UK, energy bills are set to soar by 60% bringing financial pain to millions of people already struggling to pay. The steep hike could result in total energy bills in excess of 2,000 pounds a year. Experts blame the upward trend on the green agenda which will force suppliers to invest in new technologies that consumers will have to pay for. It’s estimated that for every one percent rise in energy prices, an extra 40,000 people are plunged into fuel poverty. (4) More than 2,700 people are dying each year in England and Wales because they cannot afford to keep their homes warm. (5) P. Gosselin notes that if Germany succeeds in shifting to renewable energy, it would cost each German household 800 Euros per month, or almost 10,000 ($13,000) per year. (6) References
  1. Dennnis Cauchon, “Electric bills soar $300 in 5 years,” USA Today, December 13, 2011
  2. “The status of renewable electricity mandates in the states,” Institute for Energy Research
  3. Benny Peiser, “The real reason fuel bills are going through the roof? Crackpot green taxes you’ve never been told about,” dailymail.co, June 9, 2011
  4. Dana Gloger, “Energy bills to rocket by 60%,” express.co.uk, November 17, 2011
  5. Sean Poulter, “Green taxes could force one in four into fuel poverty,” Daily Mail, October 12, 2011
  6. P. Gosselin, The great wealth transformation—shift to 100% renewables would cost each German household an additional $1000 per month,” notrickszone.com, October 4, 2011


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Jack Dini -- Bio and Archives

Jack Dini is author of Challenging Environmental Mythology.  He has also written for American Council on Science and Health, Environment & Climate News, and Hawaii Reporter.


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