Energy powers UK economy by £24 billion

Trade body publishes two new reports on day of annual conference

The energy sector is worth £24 billion to the UK economy, according to a new report by Energy UK.

The report, entitled Energy in the UK has been published today (19 October) to coincide with the trade body’s annual conference in London highlights the role the sector plays in supporting the British economy.

According to the report, the sector generated £24 billion in gross value added (GVA) last year and also delivered a further £88 billion through supply chains and buying goods and services from other sectors.

The energy sector also paid a total of £5.9 billion in taxes in the 2015/16 financial year, including £1 billion in corporation tax and £1.4 billion in VAT.

The business also supported 730,000 jobs across the country and people working in the sector contributed the equivalent of £162,000 per person to the UK economy, according to the report.

And it shows energy firms made £11.9 billion worth of investments in 2016, which meant last year almost £1 in every £16 invested in the UK came from the sector.

“Ongoing investment in the sector has enabled the UK to generate electricity using more efficient power plants, low-carbon technologies, and innovative solutions to reducing costs through the lifecycle of a project,” the report states.

Energy UK has also another report today, which aims to help young professionals find jobs in the sector.

“We talk about the future transformation of the energy sector but so much is happening right now, with the technology and innovation of the future already powering our homes, cars and businesses,” said Energy UK chief executive, Lawrence Slade.

“The energy industry has already made great strides in producing cleaner, greener energy but a further step-change is required if we are to rise to the challenges ahead,” he added.

“The future prize is an exciting one – a decentralised, decarbonised, digital future where consumers are in greater control of their energy, and the industry is working every day to make this vision a reality.”