It is no secret that here in the UK we pay a premium for our energy. This is hardly surprising when you consider the fact that we are an island and we are forced to import the bulk of our fossil fuels, even if a lot of these come from our own North Sea oil reserves. The transportation costs associated with bringing fossil fuels into the country, combined with a dense population and high cost of labour work to ensure that we pay more than many other countries for our power.
So we know that our energy is expensive, but is it the most expensive? The answer to that question is a definitive no. We do not even have the most expensive energy in Europe, let alone the world. The dubious accolade of most expensive electricity in Europe goes to Denmark, followed closely by Italy. Italians resident in their home country actually pay just over twice what we pay here in the UK!
Although this may have you feeling considerably better about rising business electricity prices and domestic energy bills, you will be sorry to hear that we pay an awful lot more for our power than some other countries worldwide and even within Europe. People living in the Ukraine enjoy amongst the cheapest energy prices to be found anywhere in the world; less than a sixth of the prices we pay at home. There is also cause to be jealous of our transatlantic neighbours in America, who pay around two thirds what we pay in the UK. People living in Canada are even more fortunate, paying not far off half of that, or just over double the average Ukrainian energy price.
Whilst it is easy to feel sore about rising energy prices here in the UK as winter approaches, we should all take a minute to place ourselves within the global energy economy. Here in Britain we don’t have it particularly good, but we certainly don’t have it as bad as many other countries either. If you want to make the best of your energy bill, don’t forget to compare energy tariffs across different providers.