Green Energy Suppliers: What Consumers Need To Know

What is green energy?

Green energy is energy that’s generated using 100% renewable and carbon-neutral means. For decades, our energy industry has relied on the burning of fossil fuels to generate electricity but since the early 20th century, the UK has invested in greener alternatives. These alternatives do not use up our planet’s finite natural resources or send dangerous carbon emissions into our atmosphere.

What is a green energy tariff?

A green energy tariff is an energy tariff that uses electricity that’s generated through 100% renewable means. There are some green energy providers that exclusively offer these tariffs. Some green energy tariffs will also use carbon offset or green gas.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of a green energy plan?

In an era where green energy is more available and affordable than ever, a green energy plan could be a great choice for your household. Still, it’s important to weigh the potential advantages and disadvantages of this kind of tariff before you commit to one. Let’s take a closer look…

List of green energy suppliers

If you’re looking for a new green energy tariff, it’s easier to find one than ever before. There are a growing number of green energy suppliers that offer 100% renewable electricity and either carbon-offset or green gas.

Complete list of green energy suppliers

All of the “Big 6” energy suppliers offer at least one 100% renewable energy tariff. Some, like SSE and Scottish Power even generate their own green energy. The Big 6 are:

• British Gas
• SSE / OVO
• E.On
• Scottish Power
• EDF
• N Power

There are also a great many smaller and independent suppliers that offer at least one energy plan that is 100% renewable. These include:

• Bristol Energy
• Bulb
• Click Energy (only available in Northern Ireland)
• Co-Op Energy
• Ecotricity
• ESB Energy
• Good Energy
• Green Energy UK
• Green Network Energy
• Gulf Energy
• LoCO2
• M & S Energy
• Octopus Energy
• Orbit Energy
• Outfox The Market
• PFP Energy
• People’s Energy
• Pozitive Energy
• Pure Planet
• Shell Energy

Our favourite green energy suppliers

As you can see, it’s easier than ever to find a renewable energy tariff. In fact, there are so many options that you may not know where to start. In the table below, we’ll take a look at some of our favourite green energy suppliers and why we’d recommend them:

1. Bristol Energy – One of several 100% municipally-owned energy suppliers in the UK, Bristol Energy provides 100% renewable energy. And because there are no shareholders to appease by hoarding profits, their prices are eminently affordable prices. Bristol has recently been acquired by Together Energy but is still taking on new customers.
2. Bulb – Bulb offers 100% renewable electricity and green / carbon offset gas and is the UK’s largest buyer of green gas for homes. It has no fixed tariffs, just one “Vari-Fair” variable tariff that is adjusted regularly to ensure market-leading value for money.
3. Click Energy – Energy consumers in Northern Ireland can benefit from affordable green energy and free advice on reducing your household’s carbon footprint with Click Energy.
4. Ecotricity – Ecotricity is, to date, the UK’s only completely vegan energy supplier, approved by The Vegan Society. It supplies 100% renewable electricity and makes its own green gas from completely plant-based sources of agricultural waste. It also funds and anti-fracking campaigners. It may not be the cheapest supplier, but it’s probably the greenest!
5. Good Energy – The first-ever green energy supplier in the UK, Good Energy has brought renewable electricity to the market since 1999, as well as 10% biomethane and 90% carbon-offset gas.
6. Good Energy UK – Green Energy is one of the most sustainable suppliers on the market, providing both 100% renewable electricity, as well as 100% green gas.
7. Octopus Energy – A relative newcomer that’s consistently one of the highest rates suppliers for customer service and value for money. Octopus Energy has much to recommend it, but it also offers 100% renewable electricity and 100% carbon-offset gas. All at some of the best prices on the market today.
8. Orbit Energy – Orbit Energy is a partner of Shell Energy that specialises in 100% renewable energy tariffs. As well as offering affordable energy plans, they have a “Track The Cap” tariff that is always guaranteed to be 5% below Ofgem’s Energy Price Cap year-on-year.
9. Outfox The Market – While Outfox The Market does not (yet) offer green or carbon-offset gas, it does offer 100% renewable electricity. True to its name, Outfox The Market is constantly checking the cost of wholesale energy and adjusting its prices accordingly.
10. Pure Planet – Pure Planet is a 100% “digital-only” supplier. This means that they offer no call centre support and can pass the operational savings on to you. Customers can still get support via email or live chat.

Which is the best green energy supplier?

If you’re looking for a good all-rounder, we suggest the following:

• Bulb
• Octopus Energy
• Good Energy

However, it’s a tricky question to answer. Does it really depend on what metrics are the most important to you? Are you looking for a green energy supplier that will also save you money, or are you happy to pay a little extra for a supplier that goes the extra mile to be sustainable? Do you need to have a call centre to help you feel supported by your supplier? Or are you perfectly happy with an online-only supplier and tariff?

Who is the greenest supplier?

When getting the greenest supplier, you would want to choose a supplier that exclusively uses 100% renewable electricity and 100% green biomethane gas (as opposed to natural gas from underground) for the lowest possible carbon footprint.
We would suggest the following three suppliers:

• Ecotricity
• Green Energy UK
• Pure Planet

Who supplies green gas?

Pure Planet, Ecotricity and Green Energy UK offer 100% green biomethane gas. Bulb, Octopus Energy, and Good Energy all combine green gas with carbon-offset natural gas.

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Who is the cheapest green energy supplier?

That depends on where in the country you live, your usage, and what kind of meter you have. That said, in the table below we have compared some of the most affordable green energy suppliers.

What are the cheapest green energy Tariffs?

Following you’ll find an overview with the three cheapest green energy offers in the UK.

Cheapest Green Tariff

Supplier	Tariff Type	Name	Availability	Annual costs electricity	Annual costs gas	Annual costs dual fuel	Green Tariff**
	Green - Fixed 12	/	❌	£ 535.26*	£ -*	£ 1,109.17*	✔️
	Standard Variable	/	❌	£ 867.62*	£ 2,190.74*	£ 1,129.39*	✔️
	Green - Fixed 24	/	❌	£ 894.68*	£ 2,190.74*	£ 1,267.59*	✔️

*Prices vary from one city to another, so we display national averages
*Based on the official TDCV : 2,900.00 kWh of ⚡ and 12,000.00 kWh of 🔥 per year
**A Green tariff means the supplier injects in the grid the same amount of renewable energy that is consumed.

What are cheapest Green Electricity Tariffs in the UK?

In case you only need a new electricity tariff, the table below might be useful to you.

Cheapest Green Electricity Tariffs

Supplier	Name	Availability	Unit Rate Cost	Standing Charge	Average Annual Cost	Green Tariff**
	Green - Fixed 12	❌	16.99*	11.65*	£ 535.26*	✔️
	Standard Variable	❌	20.07*	27.39*	£ 867.62*	✔️
	Green - Fixed 24	❌	20.07*	27.39*	£ 867.62*	✔️

*Prices vary from one city to another, so we display national averages
*Based on the official TDCV : 2,900.00 kWh of ⚡ and 12,000.00 kWh of 🔥 per year
**Is a Green tariff if all the energy consumed is compensated by renewable energy injections in the grid.

What are the cheapest Green Gas Tariffs in the UK?

The same applies to gas. The three cheapest gas offers can be found below.

Cheapest Green Gas Tariffs

Supplier	Name	Availability	Unit Rate Cost	Standing Charge	Average Annual Cost	Exit Fee	Green Tariff**
	/	❌	4.00 p*	25.71 p*	£ 573.91*	£ 0.00	✔️
	/	❌	4.07 p*	26.59 p*	£ 585.52*	£ 0.00	✔️
	/	❌	11.37 p*	38.42 p*	£ 1,505.09*	£ 75.00	✔️

*Prices vary from one city to another, so we display national averages
*Based on Ofgem’s TDCV (2,900.00 kWh of ⚡ and 12,000.00 kWh of 🔥 per year).
**Is a Green tariff if all the energy consumed is compensated by renewable energy injections in the grid.

Is green energy more expensive?

Not at all. In fact, some of the most competitively priced energy tariffs on the market today offer 100% renewable energy. For instance, let’s take a look at the cheapest tariff in the table above, Pure Planet’s 100% Green Fixed 12 month tariff. In the table below, we’ll compare it to the UK’s average kWh spend for gas and electricity in 2020 to see how it stacks up on a monthly and annual basis. Again, this assumes usage of 2,900 kWh of electricity and 12,000 kWh of gas.

	Electricity Unit Rate & Standing Charge	Gas Unit Rate & Standing Charge	Estimated Monthly Spend	Estimated Annual Spend ‍
National Average	14.37p per kWh 20.58p standing charge	3.80p per kWh 24p standing charge	£86.29	£1,035.45
Pure Planet 100% Green Fixed 12 month	14.65444p per kWh £6.67 membership fee	2.7846p per kWh Membership fee applies	£74.08	£888.92

We’ll strive to help you find an energy deal that offers outstanding value for money as well as bringing renewable energy to your home.

How green is my energy supplier?

We’re more aware than ever of how the choices we make can affect the planet that we all share, however, we’re not always aware of whether or not our energy supplier is as eco-conscious as we are. That is why it is crucial to take a look at your current supplier and see whether they have the green credentials that you expect from them. If not, it may be worth switching to a green energy supplier.

How do you measure the greenness of a supplier?

Lots of energy companies will talk a great game about investing in a renewable future and putting images of dew-covered leaves in their branding. But as savvy energy consumers, we need to look past the marketing bluster and see what really makes an energy supplier green. For instance:

• Take a look at their energy fuel mix. Just because a supplier offers renewable tariffs doesn’t mean their energy mix is 100% renewable.
• See if they offer carbon offset or green gas as well as green electricity.
• Look at what investments they’re making in renewable technologies to bring you cheaper, greener energy in future.

Energy match, Green investment or Carbon offsetting?

All of the above are important methods when it comes to achieving a more renewable energy sector. But what do they mean?

1. Energy matching– This is where an energy supplier matches the energy that their customers supply with sustainable renewed energy from wind, solar, biomass or hydropower.
2. Green investment– This is something that all energy suppliers should be doing, and Ofgem holds them to account by ensuring that they supply Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin (REGO) certificates on the energy that they buy. Green investment means not only buying energy from renewable sources but investing in the infrastructure to generate their own green energy.
3. Carbon offsetting– Where a supplier cannot offer green gas, they offset the carbon generated by burning natural gas elsewhere. This often comes in the form of renewable energy projects at home and overseas, to ensure that the gas customers consume is net carbon neutral.

Which is better?

Although they are all important, green investment is clearly the future. The other two can mitigate the environmental impact of using fossil fuels, green investment can ensure that we look forward to a completely renewable energy sector within our lifetimes.

Fun Fact

Iceland, Costa Rica, Paraguay, and Norway all have (or are close to having) 100% renewable energy sectors.

Who has the most balanced energy mix?

In the table below, we’ve compiled energy fuel mix data for some of the UK’s most popular green energy suppliers.

Energy Supplier	Energy Fuel Mix
Bristol Energy	Wind, solar and hydro (percentages not disclosed)
Bulb	78% wind, 18% solar, 4% hydro
Good Energy	53.9% wind, 28.4% biomass, 13.4% solar, 4.3% hydro
Ecotricity	97.42% wind, 2.07% hydro, 0.51% solar
Green Energy UK	Solar, biomass, hydro and wind (percentages not disclosed)
Octopus Energy	75.3% wind, 21% solar, 3.7% hydro
Orbit Energy	Wind, solar and hydro (percentages not disclosed)
Outfox The Market	100% wind energy
Pure Planet	89% wind energy, 11% solar

What types of green energy are there and what are the pros and cons of each?

The UK energy sector is predominantly dependent on wind power. In fact, we’re the world’s largest generator of energy from wind turbines. We also generate a lot of energy from solar power, and a little bit from biomass. Here we’ll look at each kind of renewable energy in turn and the pros and cons of each.

Wind energy

Wind energy uses windmills that are strategically placed in large, flat expanses of land (or offshore areas close to the coast) that get strong winds due to changing air pressure as hot air rises and cold air sinks. These windmills are grouped together in formations called wind farms. The large blades of the windmills catch the wind and rotate, driving a turbine which in turn generates electricity. This electricity is then pumped directly into the National Grid.

In the UK, we currently have 2,450 on and offshore wind farm sites, sharing a total of 10,911 wind turbines and 24,000 Megawatt capacity.

Wind energy pros

Wind energy has a great many inherent advantages:

• It’s 100% renewable. As long as there’s wind, we’ll be able to generate carbon-neutral energy!
• It’s cheap. In fact, as of 2017, it’s cheaper to generate energy through wind than by burning natural gas.
• It’s space-efficient. The space between wind turbines in on-shore farms can be used for growing crops, raising cattle or simply wilding to restore our nation’s biodiversity.
• It creates millions of jobs and drives innovation.
• It reduces our need for imported energy. Something that will be increasingly important in the wake of Brexit.

Wind energy cons

Wind energy has a great many advantages. But it’s not without its caveats. For instance:

• Creating wind energy infrastructure is very expensive. The London array (one of our biggest wind energy projects) costs £1.8 billion to plan and construct.
• Wind energy is dependent on the caprices of the weather, making it hard to accurately predict how much energy can be generated.
• Wind turbines can be viewed as an eyesore by local communities and impede the view of our nation’s countryside.

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Solar power

The UK has a sizeable solar power network. As well as over 800,000 homes and business generating energy with their own photovoltaic (PV) solar panels, there are also huge solar farms that use the same panels on a much larger scale. While domestic solar panels generate power for the homes they occupy, any excess energy can be fed back into the National Grid to power the nation.

Suppliers pay for this energy via Feed in Tariffs or their new replacement the Smart Export Guarantee. Whether it’s at work in solar forms or on residential rooftops, this scalable technology adds to our impressive solar capacity of 13,000 MW.

Solar power pros

There are many reasons why we love solar power. These include:

• Solar power is one of the greenest forms of clean energy there is, with no emissions or by-products.
• The technology is highly scalable and increasingly affordable. So households can become collectives of renewable energy generators.
• Solar energy generates tens of thousands of new jobs every year.
• Solar panels are extremely low maintenance, both at small and large scales.

Solar power cons

As great as solar power is, it also has some disadvantages too. Such as

• While PV solar panels themselves are theoretically recyclable, there are not yet many facilities for this at the time of writing.
• The manufacture of solar panels results in harmful emissions and toxic waste water.
• Like wind energy, solar power is reliant on the weather. And it’s not as though the UK is known for its consistently hot and sunny days.

Biomass

Biomass involves the creation of electricity or heat energy by burning wooden pellets made from waste wood. Something of which the UK has an abundance, with 8.5 million tonnes heading to our landfills every year. Biomass works in the same way as burning fossil fuels. The heat generates steam, which drives a turbine to generate electricity. As well as using biomass to generate electricity, it can also be used for renewable domestic heating, with biomass boilers providing an alternative to traditional gas boilers.

Biomass pros

Biomass is a much greener way to generate energy than burning fossil fuels. Here are just a few of its advantages:

• It’s near-infinitely renewable
• It creates a productive way to use waste wood (including agricultural waste)
• It is reliable as it is not dependent on the weather

Biomass cons

Like all forms of renewable energy, biomass also has some inherent disadvantages. For instance:

• Although biomass generates very few carbon emissions compared to fossil fuels, it is not completely carbon neutral
• Biomass boilers are too large and expensive to be practical in most homes
• Biomass only works if the wood pellets are sourced sustainably and responsibly

How do I switch to green energy?

Finding the perfect balance between renewability and affordability can be tricky when you’re searching for a new energy supplier. Fortunately, the Papernest team can take care of the heavy lifting for you. Not only can we search the market high and low to bring you the perfect green supplier and tariff, we’ll even manage your switch from end-to-end to ensure that you get cheaper, greener energy quickly and without fuss.

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FAQ

🌱 My supplier has a 100% renewable energy tariff. Does that mean they’re a green supplier?

Not necessarily. Although a growing number of suppliers have at least one renewable energy tariff to their name, this just means that they match your consumption with energy from renewable sources. It doesn’t make them a green supplier, as they still supply some energy from fossil fuels. A green supplier is one that offers 100% renewable energy as well as carbon-offset or green gas.

💰 Is green energy more expensive?

Not at all. In fact, some of the most competitively priced energy tariffs on the market today offer 100% renewable energy. We’ll strive to help you find an energy deal that offers outstanding value for money as well as bringing renewable energy to your home.

🤨 How much green energy does the UK produce?

The UK produces more wind energy than any other country in the UK with a capacity of 24,000 MW. We also have 13,000 MW solar capacity and just over 10,000 MW biomass capacity. In Q2 of 2020, the UK produced over 28 tWh of renewable energy.

⭐️ Why should I use 'green' energy?

There are a great many reasons why you should consider using green energy:

1. It reduces the industry’s reliance on fossil fuels
2. It helps to reduce harmful carbon emissions
3. It contributes to thousands of new jobs in renewable energy
4. It helps us to reach our target of 100% carbon neutrality by 2050
5. It can even save you money, too!

🤝 What is the Green Energy Act?

The 2013 Energy Act (also known as the Green Energy Act) was a piece of legislation designed to slowly decarbonise the UK energy industry, and create market reform (overseen by Ofgem) to make the energy market more competitive, reliable, consumer-friendly and environmentally conscious.