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About the Coalition
The following associations have joined forces to call for a much needed national dialogue about gas uses and supply in the UK. They represent both users and producers of gas, and together represent large and small businesses supporting more than 2 million jobs across the country:
- Chemical Industries Association
- EEF the Manufacturers’ Organisation
- Energy Intensive Users Group
- Oil & Gas UK
- United Kingdom Onshore Oil and Gas
- Onshore Energy Services Group
- Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce
The use of gas in the UK
Natural gas is a versatile and hugely important source of energy in the UK.
- Heat: Gas provides around 80% of domestic, commercial and industrial heat,[i] and 84% of homes are heated by gas. [ii]
- Cooking: 61% of cooking hobs are fuelled by gas. [iii]
- Electricity: In 2014, 30% of the UK’s electricity was provided by gas [iv], both as baseload electricity and as flexible back-up to intermittent renewable generation. At 4.40pm on 19 January 2016, for example, wind was only providing 0.09 GW of power, while gas provided 22.1 GW. [v]
- Manufacturing: 500,000 jobs in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries depend on gas (including ethane and propane) as a raw material [vi], which is used to make almost anything – including clothing, plastics, toothpaste, medicines, cosmetics, adhesives and tyres.
- Agriculture: Gas is one of the main components of ammonia, used in nitrogen-based fertilisers [vii] which are spread on 75% of British farmland to help grow food. [viii]
- Recycling: Glass recycling furnaces use 1 million cubic metres of gas every day to provide the heat needed to melt down the glass. [ix]
Contact:
Newgate Communications:
Deborah Saw/Andrew Turner This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it." ' + path + '\'' + prefix + ':' + addy30587 + '\'>'+addy_text30587+'<\/a>';
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0207 680 6550
[i] Department of Energy and Climate Change, The Future of Heating: A strategic framework for low carbon heat in the UK, March 2012 https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/48574/4805-future-heating-strategic-framework.pdf
[ii] Department of Energy and Climate Change, United Kingdom housing energy fact file 2013, Tables 6a, 6b and 6d – data for 2011 (most recent year available) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-housing-energy-fact-file-2013
[iii] Energy Follow-Up Survey 2011, Report 9: Domestic appliances, cooking and cooling equipment, Prepared by BRE on behalf of the Department of Energy and Climate Change, December 2013 https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/274778/9_Domestic_appliances__cooking_and_cooling_equipment.pdf
[iv] DECC, DUKES 2015, Chapter 5: Electricity, Table 5.1 https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/electricity-chapter-5-digest-of-united-kingdom-energy-statistics-dukes
[v] See http://www.gridwatch.templar.co.uk/
[vi] Chemical Industries Association http://www.cia.org.uk/Portals/0/Documents/Manifesto%202015_1_9.pdf
[vii] The main forms of inorganic nitrogen fertilisers are ammonium nitrate, urea, ammonium phosphates and ammonium sulphate. Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, The British Survey of Fertiliser Practice: Fertiliser Use on Farm Crops for Crop Year 2013, p.9 https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/301474/fertiliseruse-report2013-08apr14.pdf
[viii] Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, The British Survey of Fertiliser Practice: Fertiliser Use on Farm Crops for Crop Year 2013, Table ES1 https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/301474/fertiliseruse-report2013-08apr14.pdf
[ix] Remsol, Powering the circular economy: why the right energy policy is vital to success, 2014 http://www.mrw.co.uk/Journals/2014/10/10/h/f/y/20141009-Powering-the-circular-economy.pdf
