Scottish Power tells ministers to back free markets or 'fully regulate' energy

collected by :Victor Alphen

The boss of Scottish Power has issued a stark challenge to Government ministers to either back the free market or fully regulate the energy industry - but put an end to the ongoing political uncertainty. The retail energy market is in limbo following Government's decision to legislate a cap on standard energy tariffs in response to the stubbornly high number of customers who fail to shop around for better deals. But Keith Anderson, the chief corporate officer for Scottish Power, said the energy price cap would not help "sticky" customers to engage with the market and could strangle investor confidence in the sector. "The key question the Government needs to answer is whether they still believe customers benefit most from free market competition," he said. Otherwise, we would urge the Government to opt for a fully regulated market.

Asia markets close higher; energy stocks rise as oil holds onto most gains

Moves in the oil markets were front and center after prices surged to their highest levels since July 2015 on Monday. Oil was little changed on Tuesday after settling higher by some 3 percent in the last session. Volatility indices stateside, which touched their lowest levels this year last week, are unlikely to remain low "if crude oil prices continue to push higher quickly," he added. The Reserve Bank of Australia on Tuesday kept interest rates steady. Elsewhere, William Dudley, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, will step down mid-2018.

Focus on FERC: Keep energy markets free markets

as mentioned in Last month, U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry proposed that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) intervene in state electricity markets to establish new rules that would have electricity consumers subsidize uneconomical coal and nuclear power plants. In its proposal, the Department of Energy (DOE) gives FERC only 60 days to decide whether to upend the nation's electricity markets. If FERC decides to enact the DOE proposal, it would undermine 25 years of progress in the development of competitive electricity markets that save consumers money. The study failed to document any way that either coal or nuclear power could help. Greg Wetstone is president and CEO of the American Council on Renewable Energy, a national nonprofit dedicated to advancing renewable energy through finance, policy and market development.