Donald Trump’s foreign policy could put energy bills up in the UK (Image: Getty)
Customers of major UK energy companies such as British Gas, EDF, E.On and OVO have been warned about the potential impact of a Donald Trump presidency on their future energy bills.
The former President swept to victory against Kamala Harris on Wednesday, confirming a belated second term.
But the President Elect’s policies could risk a knock-on effect on your British Gas (or other supplier’s) energy bill in future.
John Hardy, chief macro-strategist at investment platform Saxo, said Trump is likely to be tough on Iran, which in turn could then impact the oil market and affect the UK, as well as Europe.
In September, the Trump team released a statement saying he had been briefed by US intelligence about threats from Iran to assassinate him.
Mr Hardy said: “This is a very murky area, especially as the US has become the world’s largest oil and gas producer in the last 10-15 years. From the US point of view, it is almost entirely self-reliant, as is Canada.
“But oil prices are extremely important for the UK as it has become far more reliant on imports since the declines in North Sea oil set in about 25 years ago – so far more is at stake for the UK and Europe and especially China, the world’s largest oil importer.”
This dependence on foreign gas and oil is partly to blame for the crippling gas and electricity price rises the UK battled when Russia invaded Ukraine.
Half a year into the Ukraine war, gas was nine times more expensive than renewables. The UK market is structured so that the most expensive form of power, which is gas, dictates the price of all electricity, even wind or solar.
During the crisis, wholesale prices for gas reached record highs. In the first year, the average UK household spent £800 more on gas and bills reached peaks 51 percent higher than two years before.
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If Russia was to increase its aggression in Europe following Trump’s election, energy prices in the UK could be affected directly on gas too.
The Energy & Climate Intelligence Unit said: “Two years into Russia’s war on Ukraine, the UK is shown to be the most susceptible country in Europe to price shocks caused by a change in the supply of gas.
“The curtailed spending power of Britons was more than twice as bad as that for Spaniards and Germans. It is the most vulnerable in society – low-income families, children in draughty, mouldy homes, those with health conditions – who are most at the mercy of authoritarian regimes.
“As battle lines are drawn over renewable energy, with some pundits warning heat pumps are too big or too noisy, it’s worth noting true energy independence will only come once Britain ends its reliance on fossil fuels for power.”
