Inteb’s 2022 Energy Review

2022 was a turbulent year full of uncertainty right from the offset. To sum it all up, we’ve created an Energy Review list to discuss notable events throughout the world, and within our organisation…

January

• The warmest New Year’s Day on record is reported, with temperatures of 16.2°C in London.
• ONS Inflation 5.4%.

In our blog, “What your business needs to focus on in 2022”, we discussed the four biggest action points a business needed to focus on over the past twelve months. Inteb helped all of our clients get ahead of the curve and in short, helped with energy security.

We also talked with our community about “Decarbonising the Grid” and the opportunities for businesses, at the forefront being operational resiliency, investor attractiveness and reputational gains.

Inteb

To begin the year we consolidated our board with the appointment of Brian McCann as chief financial officer.

February

• Ofgem announces a lifting to take effect from April, of the energy price cap from £1,277 to £1,971, an increase of 54%.
• Over the course of the month diplomacy is urged throughout as Russian relations with Ukraine, EU and G7 countries begin to deteriorate.
• Russia begins a full scale invasion of Ukraine.
• ONS Inflation 5.5%. BoE interest rate raised from 0.25% to 0.5% in a bid to restrain inflation.

We discussed the changes that were to come in the 2022 energy markets. We highlighted geopolitical issues that were becoming more prominent and would lead to bigger issues over 2022, including inflation. We indicated the increased competition and supply issues to come, including low gas storage, which would become a contentious issue months later. With all the data pointing to a tough 2022 and beyond, we shared the basic principles of planning for the new normal.

Also, in our thinking this month was legislative issues such as ESOS and equally government schemes like NABERS. Highlighting legal requirements for businesses as well as best practice.

March

• ONS Inflation 6.2% up from 5.5%. BoE interest rate raised from 0.5% to 0.75% in a further bid to restrain inflation.
• Sanctions against Russia begin to be announced. Including sanctions on Oil and Gas.

In March the escalation of Russian and European/US tensions really began forcing an impact on everyday life. The russian invasion of Ukraine added to, and indeed tipped over the edge, the already heightened market conditions due to both Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic. We began to see signs that the energy market would see less supply over the coming months and years of both oil and gas than the average demand. With this at the forefront, we started discussing how to navigate this new energy landscape.

Inteb

We successfully reaccredited for Safe Contractor for another 12 months and another three years for its integrated management systems covering Quality (QMS) ISO 9001, Environmental (EMS) ISO 14001, and Safety (SMS) ISO 45001.

April / May

• The energy price cap in Great Britain rises by 54%, from £1,278 to £1,971. Bank of England warns that the country is facing the biggest single shock from energy prices since the 1970s. It is the largest increase, by far, in the price cap since it was introduced.
• The government’s new energy strategy is published, which includes a plan for eight newnuclear reactors and 95% of the UK’s electricity coming from low-carbon sources by 2030.
• April ONS Inflation 7%, up from 6.2%. BoE interest rate raised from 0.75% to 1.0%, fourth successive monthly increase.
• MET office warns that probability of global average temperaturesreaching 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels over the next five years is now almost 50:50 (48%).
• May ONS Inflation 9%, up from 7%. Highest of any G7 nation.
• Chancellor Rishi Sunak announces a £15 billion package of measures to address soaring energy costs. This would be revisited later in the year when it becomes clear that the initial package would not be sufficient.

Inteb

In April we initially introduced our new service, Inteb Renewables, where we fully focus on sustainability and helping businesses invest in renewable technology to begin their self sufficient energy journey. We focused on solar, heat pumps, LED lighting and EV charging to begin helping our community implement a strong change to take real ownership of their energy future.

In May we began helping the Royal Albert Hall with their sustainability needs – Our sustainability team is helping drive RAH’s carbon management planning and strategy development whilst capturing their key scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions.

June

• Prime Minister Boris Johnson faces a confidence vote which he wins, however 40% of his party’s MP’s voted no confidence.
• The Bank of England raises the interest rate from 1.0% to 1.25%, the fifth successive increase.
• ONS Inflation 9.1%, up from 9%.
• The Climate Change Committee publishes its largest UK climate progress report to date, warning that the UK will fail to achieve net zero by 2050 under current policies.

June saw us pressing the need for accreditations, NABERS and BREEAM especially, so that your property is as attractive to would be tenants as possible. Advocacy of your sustainable and renewable ideals will also reflect well on your brand. We also touched upon the heat network regulations and properly prepared our clients for the changes throughout 2022 and beyond.

Inteb

June saw the full launch of Inteb Renewables. Due to unprecedented demand from our existing clients we have a pipeline of £1m in 2023.

July

• Prime Minister Boris Johnson resigns after 62 government ministers or secretaries resigned from their administration posts. He announces he will stay on until September.
• A national emergency is declared after a red extreme heat warning is issued by the Met Office for London, the south east and parts of central England as temperatures are expected to reach 40 °C on 18 and 19 July.
• A temperature above 40 °C is recorded for the first time in the UK. A record night-time temperature is also recorded for 18–19 July, with 25.9 °C.
• ONS Inflation 9.4%, up from 9.1%.

Throughout May, June and July the dominating narrative was inflation and rising costs of energy which were really starting to come to the fore. We held many discussions and posted articles on how a business could navigate their way through these troubling market conditions, advising whether they could lock in an energy contract or look to energy smart tech as a path towards energy security.

August

• The Bank of England raises the interest rate from 1.25% to 1.75%, the biggest increase in 27 years. The Bank also warns that inflation could reach 13% later in the year and that the British economy may enter a recession.
• ONS Inflation 10.1%, up from 9.4%. Highest level since 1982.
• The Prime Minister, Chancellor, and Business Secretary meet representatives of energy companies to discuss the ongoing price rises, but the meeting concludes without any resolution.
• Ofgem announces an 80% rise in the price cap on household energy bills, from £1,971 to £3,549. The largest rise ever and dwarfs the previous cap rise, which itself was at the time, by far the largest rise.
• The ONS reports that the UK economy shrank by 0.1% between April and June.

While the UK in July and August may have seen record temperatures far above the average, at Inteb we were pressing the need for energy efficiency and how to really dial in where savings could be made to your business. If you haven’t yet read these articles, please do so here:

• 10 ways to make your business more energy efficient
• Achieving savings and net-zero with real time energy-data

Inteb

We achieved a milestone. After carrying out commercial EPC’s for many years, we reach the incredible milestone of completing our 5000th commercial EPC.

September

• Liz Truss becomes Prime Minister after beating Rishi Sunak in the Conservative Leadership Election.
• Liz Truss announces plans to limit energy bills, with a bill for a typical household capped at £2,500 a year for the next two years. A new six month scheme to limit bills for businesses is also announced.
• ONS Inflation 9.9%, down from 10.1%.
• Queen Elizabeth II dies on 8th
• Parliament to be suspended for two weeks until 21st September, despite no financial package to offset the energy crisis being detailed.
• The BofE raises the interest rate from 1.25% to 1.75%.
• New Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng announces an emergency mini budget, in which he announces the biggest tax cuts since 1972. Included are the scrapping of the 45% income tax rate paid only by the richest of earners, the lifting of the cap on bankers’ bonuses and a planned rise in corporation tax to be scrapped.
• The fracking ban was lifted.
• The pound proceeds to fall to its lowest ever level against the dollar, $1.03 to the £, further weakening the country’s position.
• The emergency mini budget receives condemnation from economists, politicians from all parties, and rare commentary from global institutions like IMF and fellow G7 countries such as United States.

In September, we continued to guide our clients and wider community on how best to operate in these never before seen market conditions while the shadow of gas shortages started to loom over winter preparations in the energy sector. We also carried on the conversation around ESOS, with particular focus on phase 3, which needs to be implemented in the next twelve months. Find out here if you need to be compliant.

October

• The Liz Truss premiership began scaling back some of the announced tax cuts.
• ONS Inflation 10.1%, up from 9.9%.
• Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng is fired and new Chancelllor Jeremy Hunt reverses almost all tax measures announced in the emergency mini budget.
• Liz Truss resigns as PM after only 45 days.
• Rishi Sunak becomes PM after all other candidates drop out of the leadership race.
• The fracking ban is reimposed by Rishi Sunak.

October was the lead up month to COP 27, and with that we previewed what was expected to come from the conference and wrote specifically about UK clean energy targets in the next decade. Also, the turmoil in government over the summer and autumn had really bitten into preparation for the problematic energy winter.

November

• COP 27 was held in Egypt between 6th and 18th November.
• The Bank of England raises interest rates by 0.75 percentage points from 2.25% to 3%, the biggest hike since 1989, and forecasts a recession until 2024.
• ONS Inflation 11.1%, up from 10.1%.
• ONS figures show that the UK economy shrank by 0.2% in the three months to September. Second consecutive quarterly retraction.
• Chancellor Jeremy Hunt delivers his autumn statement. In it, he announces a raft of austerity measures to last until 2028 with key points for the energy sector being; the introduction of a 45% tax on companies generating electricity, effective from January 2023. All electric vehicles to pay road taxes from April 2025. Windfall tax on profits of oil and gas companies increased from 25% to 35% and extended until March 2028.
• Ofgem announces another rise in the price cap on household energy bills, from £3,549 to £4,279.

We wrote about how your business can achieve carbon neutrality and the benefits you would gain. We also touched upon the growth within the sector with respect to clients’ demands in their efforts to improve energy performance, drive down energy usage and billing and to reduce their carbon footprint. We anticipate another 40% uptick in growth in the coming year as the sub industry within the energy sector carries on it exponential expansion.

Inteb

We carried out our 260th heat network feasibility survey – helping clients navigate and comply with the heat network (metering and d billing) regulations which apply to all commercial landlords that bill for either heating, cooling or hot water to multiple tenants via a service charge.

December

With COP 27 finished and the dust settled for a while, we brought you our quick recap of what happened in those two weeks in the desert, and whether anything constructive came from the ‘conference of the parties’. We also talked about the price cap ending in April and the challenges your business will face after what will have been a tough winter. Energy purchasing and how procurement can save you money was in our thoughts also, especially in the current climate when having our energy experts is a valuable resource to ensure you get the best deal available and not locked into bad contract.

Inteb

What a great end to the year as our very own Lili Boyle graduated from the University of Leeds with a Distinction in Sustainability and Business Masters. In addition to receiving the highest degree classification, Lili was awarded the ‘Msc Sustainability and Business Prize for Best Overall Performance’.

A couple of achievements we’re proud of…

Growth surge as businesses face global challenges – Despite the challenges post-Covid, we achieved a 30% growth in trading conditions throughout 2022. We are anticipating a similar pattern in 2023. We are rolling out a significant expansion programme to meet the demand for services such as energy contract management, ESOS, energy and carbon reduction programmes and ESG solutions.

HR – Rolling out an ambitious change to HR working and support culture. Foundations for success is the culmination of 12 months of hard work to ensure our teamwork and live happier and healthier lifestyles, to be inspired to achieve our goals, and to be super compassionate and supportive. Underpinning this is our goal to be the leading employer in our sector, and achieving Gold Investors in People for the third year in a row shows that we are working towards that goal and the prestigious IIP platinum award.

Want to improve your business’s sustainability credentials in 2023?

Let’s get the conversation started

Let’s get the conversation started – call us now on 0151 601 3476