Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he plans to take to ensure that electricity costs for the UK steel sector are competitive.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
The Government is committed to minimising energy costs for businesses to ensure our economy remains strong and competitive. The ability for our industries to be able to compete across Europe and globally is a priority for this Government.
Our aim is to work with the steel sector and help them to reduce carbon emissions. We will continue to support the steel sector in achieving these aims through the various funds available such as the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund and Clean Steel Fund.
We estimate that the reduction in the various renewable policy costs for eligible energy intensive industries, including steel, will save them around £400m a year in electricity costs. Between 2013 and 2019, total compensation paid to the steel sector was over £480m.
We have also extended compensation for the indirect emission costs in electricity prices for the most energy-intensive companies at significant risk of carbon leakage by a year, to the end of 2021.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy to exempt UK steel producers from 85 per cent of the costs of the Capacity Market.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
All these issues are related to electricity costs for the steel industry and were highlighted in the recent UK Steel report “Closing the Gap”. We welcome this report and will give its recommendations careful consideration.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy to provide 100 per cent relief for the cost of renewable energy generation for the steel sector.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
All these issues are related to electricity costs for the steel industry and were highlighted in the recent UK Steel report “Closing the Gap”. We welcome this report and will give its recommendations careful consideration.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of network charging costs on the ability of the steel sector to compete globally.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
All these issues are related to electricity costs for the steel industry and were highlighted in the recent UK Steel report “Closing the Gap”. We welcome this report and will give its recommendations careful consideration.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on the steel sector of the forthcoming Targeted Charging Review reforms.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
All these issues are related to electricity costs for the steel industry and were highlighted in the recent UK Steel report “Closing the Gap”. We welcome this report and will give its recommendations careful consideration.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy to implement 100 per cent compensation for the indirect costs of carbon to lower electricity prices for the steel sector.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
All these issues are related to electricity costs for the steel industry and were highlighted in the recent UK Steel report “Closing the Gap”. We welcome this report and will give its recommendations careful consideration.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy to introduce a Capacity Market Levy exemption to lower electricity prices for the steel sector.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
All these issues are related to electricity costs for the steel industry and were highlighted in the recent UK Steel report “Closing the Gap”. We welcome this report and will give its recommendations careful consideration.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy to introduce discounts on energy network costs for the steel sector.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
All these issues are related to electricity costs for the steel industry and were highlighted in the recent UK Steel report “Closing the Gap”. We welcome this report and will give its recommendations careful consideration.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the recommendations set out in the report by UK Steel entitled Closing the gap, published in February 2021, on reducing the industrial electricity price disparity between the UK and Germany and France.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
All these issues are related to electricity costs for the steel industry and were highlighted in the recent UK Steel report “Closing the Gap”. We welcome this report and will give its recommendations careful consideration.
Asked by: Jessica Morden (Labour - Newport East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of any divergence between the UK and the EU Emissions Trading System on the UK steel sector.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As stated in the Government Response to the Consultation on The Future of UK Carbon Pricing, the design of the UK Emissions Trading Scheme builds on and is similar to Phase IV of the EU ETS, including for free allocation of emissions allowances. This provides continuation of emissions trading and protects the competitiveness of UK businesses. To have a take a fair, proportionate and considered approach to potential improvements to free allocation, we have committed to reviewing free allocation of allowances.
We currently have a range of ambitious policies in place that will help industry to reduce costs and decarbonise, including the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund, Clean Steel Fund and Industrial Clusters Mission, among others. In Spring 2021, we will publish an Industrial Decarbonisation Strategy, setting out a coherent plan for decarbonisation of the UK’s industrial sector in line with our net zero target.