How environmentally friendly is your energy supplier?

Customers on the hunt for a new more eco-friendly solution to their household energy needs will be delighted to hear that a new report from the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) entitled the “Green Source Verification Report” shows that six of Ireland’s ten energy suppliers have passed the CRU’s annual verification process to confirm that they have sufficient green attributes to cover their sales of green source products.

Even better - four of those suppliers now only provide energy sourced from 100% renewable sources!

Currently, the island of Ireland meets 40.09% of its energy demands via renewable sources, helped in no small way by the PSO levy - yes that annoying charge you see on your electricity bill every month actually does some good!

What is the PSO levy?

For the unfamiliar, the PSO Levy, or Public Service Obligation Levy, is a government subsidy all electricity customers are required to pay. The money collected from the PSO Levy is used to subsidise renewable energy generation and peat burning power plants.

Ireland’s fuel mix breakdown

So, if Ireland gets 40.09% of its energy via renewable sources, where does the rest come from? Check out the table below to find out:

While we can commend ourselves that renewable sources represent the greatest share, for the eco-conscious among us, it’s important that we continue working towards increasing that figure.

How can you do that? Well, the easiest way to do so is to choose to purchase your energy from a supplier that uses 100% renewable sources. Check the chart below to see if your supplier does:

Already signed up with a renewable energy supplier? Next stop is improving your home’s energy efficiency

If you’re already signed up with a 100% renewable supplier but you’re still looking for ways to reduce your carbon footprint, the good news is there are plenty of ways to do so while also having the added benefit of lowering your bills.

For instance, you could look into installing a smart thermostat in your home. These devices allow you to control your home’s heating from anywhere in the world via your smartphone; i.e. never pay to heat an empty home again!  

We’ve looked at several devices including Climote, Hive Active Heating, Nest, as well as Netatmo. It’s also worth noting that you can get some energy suppliers offer free smart home thermostats when you sign up as a new customer.

If you’re looking into making some more long-term energy efficiency measures, there are plenty of grant schemes out there including Energia’s Cosy Homes Scheme and the SEAI’s  Better Energy Homes scheme to help you make eco-friendly modifications to your home such as upgrading your insulation, installing solar panels or heat pumps and so on.  

Don’t forget!

If you haven’t switched energy suppliers in over a year there’s a good chance that you’re overpaying on your bills. Right now, you can make an average saving of €342 by switching both your gas and electricity to a new supplier and it only take a few minutes.

So what are you waiting for? Find yourself the perfect green energy deal on bonkers.ie right now (we make it really easy by marking all of our renewable suppliers with a 100% Green Energy label), help the environment, and save your pocket in the process too!