Cost is a major factor for most people, myself included, when looking at a new energy supplier, however it’s also really important to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. With so many energy providers* in the UK it’s incredibly difficult to work out which is the best one to choose, especially as we should consider how ethical those companies are and whether they have a habit of increasing tariffs often. Although the focus in this article is to find the most eco-friendly energy suppliers in the UK, I’ll also look at the cheapest green tariffs and the overall ethics of the greenest energy providers.
This article will mainly be talking about electricity and not gas, as although ‘green gas’ is possible to find it is more difficult. Most energy suppliers use carbon offsetting schemes for their gas supplies (except one!)
*I found 81 energy suppliers in the UK, so I won’t be discussing all of them!
What is Green Energy?
“energy that can be produced in a way that protects the natural environment, for example by using wind, water, or the sun” – Cambridge Dictionary
Green energy includes solar power, wind power, hydroelectric power, tidal energy, wave power, biomass energy and geothermal energy. You can find a good definition of the different types of green energy here on alternative-energies.net
National Grid Energy Sources
National Grid Energy SourcesOver the last decade our reliance on fossil fuels has gone down, but we still have a long way to go to reduce our carbon emissions to more acceptable levels.
What’s interesting in the graph of ‘All time (yearly averages)’ is the very clear year on year reduction in our use of fossil fuels (red line), and in fact a year on year reduction in our overall demand for energy (black line). I hope this is down to people making a concerted effort to save energy at both home and at work.
Except for a surge in 2020, which can be put down to more people being at home during the pandemic, every year since 2012 has seen less overall demand for energy. This does show that we still have some work to do to reduce our demand for energy at home.
You can see a detailed breakdown of National Grid energy sources on https://grid.iamkate.com/ which is really interesting.
Green Energy Suppliers in The UK
When choosing a new energy supplier be aware that many companies offer green tariffs but they might actually be producing energy from fossil fuels. Companies like Shell Energy claim to offer 100% renewable energy, but this isn’t entirely accurate. What they actually do is purchase REGO’s which are certificates they can buy from actual renewable energy providers. In essence they are offsetting their emissions instead of investing in green energy sources. I talk about this more in my article about greenwashing.
The Big Six
There are 6 main energy suppliers in the UK which are referred to as The Big Six.
“The Big Six were the United Kingdom’s largest retail suppliers of gas and electricity. In 2019, the Big Six companies were British Gas, EDF Energy, E.ON UK, Npower, Scottish Power, and SSE.
As of Q3 2019, the Big Six held a combined market share of 70% for electricity supply and 69% for gas supply in Great Britain. They previously held a combined market share across both markets of 100% in 2004.
In 2019, a complex merger and asset swap transaction meant that German power giant E.ON absorbed Npower. OVO Energy acquired SSE’s domestic retail customers, effective January 2020, but will continue to use the SSE brand for the time being” – wikipedia
Unsurprisingly the Big Six don’t feature much when we start to discuss the most ethical and eco-friendly energy suppliers in the UK. My advice is to just avoid the big companies and look into the smaller energy suppliers as they are making far more effort to invest in renewable energy.
Most Ethical Energy Suppliers UK
Please bear with me, due to the current energy crisis and the loss of many energy companies in the UK recently, this article is currently being updated…
The information below may be out of date…
100% Green Energy Suppliers?
Where do the Top 5 eco-friendly energy companies actually get their energy from?
Green Energy UK
“The UK’s only supplier of 100% green gas and electricity”
“When you sign up to Green Energy UK, you are choosing energy that has been sustainably generated from green and renewable sources.
No gimmicks, no carbon offsetting. Just 100% green gas and electricity for people who genuinely care about their impact on our environment.”
Trustpilot Rating – 4.5 / 5
Early Exit Fee – £0
Cost – Green Energy UK are pricy compared to other energy suppliers, but they do seem to be the greenest energy company available in the UK, in terms of gas and electricity. I would hope that with more customers the cost should go down. It’s worth looking at their Tide tariff, especially if you work from home, as it has cheaper rates in the daytime.
Additional Information – You can sell back any surplus energy that your own renewable installation has created.
Good Energy
“At Good Energy, we believe the UK can be powered purely by renewables. We source all our electricity from renewable sources like solar power, wind power, hydroelectric power and biogeneration. We always have done and we always will.”
“Carbon Neutral Gas. 10% is biogas from organic matter such as farm waste. The rest we offset through carbon reduction schemes.”
Trustpilot Rating – 4.2 / 5
Early Exit Fee – £0
Cost – There are more tariffs available with Good Energy than there are with Green Energy and the standing charges seems to be lower as well.
Ecotricity
“Welcome to Britain’s greenest energy company. All our electricity is green, generated at wind and sun parks around Britain. It’s also certified vegan. Our gas is a mix of carbon-neutralised natural gas and sustainable green gas.
What makes us different is that we have no shareholders. So, instead of paying dividends we invest your bills in building new forms of green energy.”
Trustpilot Rating – 3.6 / 5
Early Exit Fee – £0
Cost – “All our customers start and stay on our latest best price, and there are no contracts or exit fees to tie you in. Unlike most energy companies, we don’t hook you in with a discount and jack up your tariff after a year or two.”
Additional Information – According to Ecotricity they are recommended by Sea Shepherd, The Vegan Society, Viva!, The RSPB, Friends of The Earth and the UK’s most ethical bank Triodos.
People’s Energy
“People’s Energy wasn’t set up for profit. It was set up by the people, for the people. And we have a mission: to end fuel poverty, for good. The more people join, the more power we all have.”
“Cheaper energy shouldn’t come at the cost of the earth. Our electricity is powered by nature, generated in the UK from solar, hydro and wind. It’s energy that’s cleaner as well as kinder – at no extra cost.”
Trustpilot Rating – 4 / 5
Early Exit Fee – From £0, although some tariffs do have an exit fee attached
Cost – Although they claim to be cheap, and it’s true that some of their standing charges are lower than many other companies, until they get more customers, like any other green tariff available you will be paying slightly more for your energy. However, they offer ‘profits back’. “we pledge to return 75% of our profits to our members, as soon as we can sustainably do so. What does this mean? It’s our guarantee that you’ll never pay more for energy that you need to.”
Bulb Energy
“We provide our members with 100% renewable electricity from solar, wind and hydro. And our gas is 100% carbon neutral too. We offset the emissions from the gas we supply by supporting carbon reduction projects around the world. Plus, we’re the biggest buyer of green gas for homes in the UK so a chunk of our gas mix comes from renewable sources, like food or farm waste, too.”
Trustpilot Rating – 4.6 / 5
Early Exit Fee – £0
Cost – In my local area, Bulb offer the 7th cheapest green tariff but are seemingly the only company to provide 100% renewable electricity.
Additional Information – “As a certified B-Corp, we’re working to demonstrate how business can be a force for good. For every new member that switches to Bulb, we donate £2 to Bulb Foundation which makes grants to charities and social enterprises tackling the climate crisis head on.”
Which Eco-Friendly Energy Supplier Should You Choose?
All of the above energy suppliers are certainly worth looking into if you want to make a real difference to your households carbon footprint. I truly believe that people who can afford to pay slightly more for renewable energy really should be doing so. And the more people that switch, the cheaper it should become.
Each company has something slightly different to offer to their customers, so if being vegan is as important to you as the environment then you should look at Ecotricity. If you need both electricity and gas then Green Energy UK is the best option. The fact that People’s Energy give profits back to their customers is extremely intriguing to me and I’ll certainly be looking into them in more detail. In the long term, I believe they’ll be the cheapest green energy option.
Of course who you decide to go with does depend on what you can afford. Most companies will be able to provide energy to your local area, but you do need to check that your preferred supplier does.
How you use energy at home will make a massive difference to your energy bills and your carbon footprint, whether you switch to an eco-friendly energy supplier or not. Check out these ways to save energy at home.
If you like what I do and want to support me, you can buy me a ‘coffee’ which helps with the running costs of the website. Alternatively come and say hello on facebook, twitter or pinterest.
