In its new industrial strategy, BEIS has said that energy prices are an important factor in maintaining competitiveness. That’s right, but it’s not the whole story.

First, times are changing when it comes to the way in which electricity is bought. With contracts for difference, and generators for which most of the cost is upfront, the option of long-term fixed-price contracts is a real one. And with storage, demand-side response and self-generation, so are active power contracts.