British steel producers now pay close to £30 per megawatt hour more for electricity than their French competitors, the widest gap in three years, according to figures from the industry body UK Steel reported by The Guardian.
The group links the rise to the jump in global gas prices since the war involving Iran, because gas still sets the wholesale price of power in Britain. France relies largely on nuclear generation. The difference had narrowed to £18 last year. With around three-quarters of British steel exports sold into the EU, UK Steel says the only quick fix is a direct subsidy, proposing a price cap it estimates would cost about £51m a year. The government says it has already cut bills for thousands of manufacturers and saved energy-intensive firms around £1bn annually.
Source: The Guardian
