Green energy: Everything you need to know

Many businesses are now taking the necessary steps toward corporate responsibility by reducing their carbon footprint. This is the reason why they are opting for green business energy tariffs. You should remember that choosing a green energy tariff can usually be cheaper in the short term for businesses than using generating your renewable energy. 

No doubt, it’s now crucial for businesses and household consumers to save the planet by using green energy while saving money. The good news is that Utility Bidder can help you find the right green business energy tariffs. The company works with several green energy suppliers, making it easier for you to have the best energy deal. This article discusses green energy and everything you have to know about it. 

Green energy tariffs

Most energy consumers nowadays want to save the planet while saving money, so it’s no surprise that many of them are looking for green energy tariffs. A green energy tariff functions when a green energy supplier promises you to match some or all of the electricity your business uses with renewable energy. This means that the energy supplier can feed back the energy into the National Grid. Therefore, there is usually a big percentage of green energy available in the national grid when there are more energy users who choose green energy tariffs. 

Ideally, when you choose a green energy tariff, you can still have your electricity from the national grid just like you would access it with a non-green energy tariff. You should note that a good percentage of the electricity available in the national grid originates from renewable green sources like solar, sea, and wind. Some of the electricity is generated by burning fossil fuels or in nuclear power plants.

It’s worth mentioning that you need to check the fuel mix that your green energy supplier offers because there are various types of green energy. Energy suppliers are required to publish all the information about their fuel mix. Therefore, you can check if the electricity your business utilizes is matched with 100 percent renewable energy.  

Quite often, electricity produced from renewable sources can sometimes affect the environment, especially when you consider the installation, manufacture, and operation of the equipment. Hence, some business energy suppliers provide information on the carbon content that is in their electricity. You should remember that besides choosing a green energy tariff, there are also other ways you can help the environment. For example, you can decide to invest in renewable energy projects like wind farms to assist clean up the energy supply. 

By now you may be wondering whether or not you can find green gas. Unfortunately, green gas is still in its infancy, so it may be hard to find it. Also, it’s expensive and hard to produce gas from renewable sources, though you can find some energy suppliers that offer some type of green gas. This type of gas is usually made through decaying food, bio-methane, and animal and plant waste.

You can find many green energy tariffs out there, and they are usually available from smaller energy suppliers rather than the big six utility companies. Remember that you may need to pay a premium to get a green energy contract. 

Renewable energy tariffs for businesses

It’s also a good idea to think about renewable energy tariffs for your business. You can decide to choose any of the green energy business suppliers to have a business tariff, but it makes sense to shop around so that you can compare energy deals that fit your business model.

One of the most common green energy tariffs is called the fixed-rate green energy tariff. This tariff tends to be cheaper than a standard variable rate tariff when you get it from conventional energy suppliers. This is because most fixed rate tariffs, which can be green or otherwise have more favorable terms than standard variable rate deals. In some cases, your fixed-rate green tariff may not be the cheapest energy tariff, but it gives you the chance to benefit from predictable energy costs. 

A fixed energy tariff works by locking in the business energy price you have to pay for each unit of energy your business utilizes for a specific period. This period can be a year, two years, or even three years. 

The only problem is that you cannot benefit from any energy price reductions. Also, most fixed energy tariffs attract an exit fee if you decide to switch to another business energy supplier before the expiry of the contract. That said, you can choose to switch energy suppliers within a few days before your energy tariff expires, so this gives you enough time to look for another appealing energy contract without paying an exit fee. 

Generating your renewable energy 

In some cases, choosing a green energy tariff can be the first step your business may take to become more responsible. This may need some significant investment, but some businesses choose to start generating their renewable energy. There are several benefits you can have by doing this besides reducing the carbon footprint of your business.

One of the benefits is that you can lower the overall energy costs of your business. This can be a worthwhile investment if you have your business premises and intend to use them for several years. The timeline of when renewable energy investment can save you cash tends to depend on the amount of money you spend and the type of renewable energy you want to invest in.

Solar panels happen to be one of the ways your business can start producing your renewable energy. They are easy to install and don’t need a lot of space because you can install them on the sides of your building or on the roof. The solar panels can use the sunlight and convert it into energy.

Alternatively, you can choose ground or geothermal heat pumps. You can fit them to the side of the building and they utilize low amounts of heat that is naturally found in the ground. The heat can be used for heating and cooling your building.