Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to help (a) the UK glass industry and (b) other energy-intensive industries meet the challenges of rising wholesale energy costs.

The Government recognises this is a worrying time for businesses facing pressures due to the significant increases in global gas prices and its impact on electricity and carbon prices.

My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State has met representatives of the UK’s high energy-using sectors including the glass industry in the past months in order to understand the impact on their business, and extensive engagement with industry continues across government at both a ministerial and official level. The Government’s priorities are to ensure costs can be managed and supplies of energy are maintained.

Many high energy-using businesses will have hedging strategies in place which help to shield them from exposure to the gas and electricity price rises, while some may be more reliant on current market prices.

To help ensure our economy remains strong and competitive, between 2013 and 2020, total relief to energy intensive industries for electricity policy costs of over £2billion was provided. This helped over 250 businesses across the UK, including 12 glass companies. In 2020 alone, the Government provided relief to Employment Investment Initiatives for electricity policy costs worth over £470million.

In 2018, the Government announced £315 million of funding for the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund, which will support businesses with high energy use to cut their bills until 2024.