Energy poverty is not being able to afford adequate warmth, cooling, lighting, or the energy to power appliances that guarantee a decent standard of living and health. One shorthand rule is that a household is energy poor if it must spend more than 10 percent of its income on power. As renewable energy mandates are rising 'ecological' taxes have driven up electricity prices, and increases in energy poverty have become a problem in a number of countries. 1
Britain is hurtling towards a 'catastrophic winter'
An estimated two hundred million people already suffer from energy poverty, meaning energy sucks up one-tenth or more of their income. So they either have to use less energy, or they have to cut spending on other things. But energy poverty isn't just an extra cost to the already vulnerable--it can disrupt their lives. For instance, energy poverty means that poorer, elderly people can't afford to keep their homes properly heated, leaving them to stay longer in bed to keep warm. Th elite use only a small portion of their large incomes on energy, so even dramatic price increases matter much less to them. This is why it is easier for the rich to argue for high energy taxes. In fact, financial benefits from climate policies, like subsidies given to a home owner for erecting a solar panel or insulating a house, or driving a Tesla, overwhelmingly go to the richest. 2
Britain is hurtling towards a 'catastrophic winter' which could see half of households in fuel poverty as gas prices remained close to all-time highs. Bills for millions of households are tipped to spiral from 1,971 pounds now to hit 3,554 pounds from October and yet even rise to 5,800 pounds in April.
Business chiefs were warning that many small firms may struggle to stay afloat as their soaring energy bills are not capped. Latest data also showed UK private sector growth has slowed to a new 18-month low after factories were hit by waning customer demand. 3
Charities have said the rise could completely 'wipe out' the incomes of poorer households, leaving millions with the threat of bills they cannot pay or the choice between heating and eating this winter. 4
In the last week of August, shocked Europeans, mostly in the UK and Ireland, posted viral photos of shockingly high energy bills amid the ongoing and worsening energy crisis. Several of the posts were from small business owners who are getting absolutely crushed and won't be able to remain operational much longer.
Every year 600,000 households (2 million people) are getting their power switched off in Germany
In Germany, electricity prices have more than doubled since 2000 when solar and wind started receiving massive subsidies and favorable regulations and their electricity prices are three to four times what one would pay in the US. 5
A 2017 study found that the proportion of households in Germany spending more than 10 percent of their income on energy tripled from 7.5 percent in 1986 to 22 percent in 2013. Every year 600,000 households (2 million people) are getting their power switched off in Germany because they can't afford the skyrocketing electric bills. 6
Some German shops are no longer allowed to keep the entrances continuously open in order to prevent energy from being wasted by excess heating or air conditioning. The prime minister of Baden Wurttemberg said that citizens should use a washcloth instead of taking showers all the time. 7
In yet another truly astonishing announcement that demonstrates the desperation of this hour, German steelmaker Arcelor Mittal, one of the largest steel production facilities in Europe, has shuttered operations due to high energy prices. Gas and electricity prices have increased tenfold within just a few months says the company, and they are no longer competitive in a market that is 25 percent supplied by imports. This comes after announced closures of aluminum smelters, copper smelters, and ammonia production plants over the last few weeks.
In France, the cost of electricity production continues to increase at a rapid rate. On August 25, the one year forward price rose to 900 euros per megawatt hour (MWh) from its 10 year average of just 41 euros per MWh. 8
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Staggering number of American households are currently behind on making utility payments
Hungry Italians at the food bank to collect bread and milk in the economic capital of Italy, Milan, was a radio item on Canada Free Press, August 28, 2022.
An Italian news report says, "Bars and restaurants are putting their monster gas and electricity bills on public display as part of efforts to highlight the dramatic situation faced by Italian businesses struggling amid a surge in energy prices."
In Prague 70,000 protesters took to the streets over the energy crisis. 9
Most of the current problems are due to European states' policy decisions to reduce fossil fuels and increase the capacity of renewable energy installations. Almost all of the countries in western Europe have been closing coal plants in the past 10 years. Coal fueled electricity production has been reduced significantly. There were 324 European coal plants in 2016. Now 50 percent of them are on track for a 2030 closure. 8
It's even happening in the United States. Recent data indicate a staggering number of American households are currently behind on making utility payments due to mainly soaring energy costs sparking fears that mass power shutoffs are on the horizon. More than 20 million US families are behind on their utility bills. 10
In the US, urban and low-income households spend roughly three times as much of their income on energy costs as compared to non low-income households. 11
References
Ronald Bailey, "Renewable energy mandates are making poor people poorer," Reason, June 2016
Bjorn Lomborg, False Alarm, (New York, Basic Books, 2020)
Nicholas Cecil and Jonathan Prynn, "Half of households face fuel poverty in catastrophic winter, warns energy chief," sports.yahoo.com, August 23, 2022
Nadhim Zahawi, "People on 45,000 pounds could struggle with bills, says chancellor,", the guardian.com, August 27, 2022
Alex Epstein, "Energy poverty kills,"cornwallalliance.org, June 25, 2021
Stephen Moore, "Europe's lesson teaches us: don't go green," townhall.com, May 14, 2017
P. Gosselin, "Germany plans climate lockdown---forbidden to leave doors open--washcloths instead of showers!", notrickszone.com, August 23, 2022
Vijay Jayaraj, "European energy crisis product of unacknowledged policy failure," co2coalition.org, August 28, 2022
Pamela Geller, "70,000 Czech protesters flood Prague over energy crisis," principia-scientific.com, September 8, 2022
Breck Dumas, "More than 20 million US households are behind on utility bills," fox29.com, August 28, 2022
Dominic J. Bednar and Tony G. Reames, "Recognition of and response to energy poverty in the United States," Nature Energy, March 23, 2020
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.
Energy poverty is not being able to afford adequate warmth, cooling, lighting, or the energy to power appliances that guarantee a decent standard of living and health. One shorthand rule is that a household is energy poor if it must spend more than 10 percent of its income on power. As renewable energy mandates are rising 'ecological' taxes have driven up electricity prices, and increases in energy poverty have become a problem in a number of countries. 1
