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GREEN CONCERNS OVER U.S. TAKEOVER OF ENERGY GROUP

30 Apr 1998

FOE's concerns are that:

• Texas Utilities' environmental credentials are poor - as well as operating some of the most polluting industrial plants in Texas, the company has also been lobbying the American government not to take action on climate change;
• this may jeopardise Eastern Electricity's current programmes of investment in renewable energy, such as the EcoPower Tariff, despite informal assurances received by FOE from Eastern's Director that their policy on renewables and sustainability will remain unchanged;
• Eastern will become the eighth of the twelve UK Regional Electricity Companies to be taken over by an American company, which raises concerns about accountability to UK electricity customers (eg, no AGMs are taking place in the UK for the following RECs: East Midlands, Midlands, SEEBOARD, SWEB and Yorkshire). US regulation experts have expressed concerns to OFFER about the limits of UK regulatory controls over US utilities and the protection of customers' interests;
• the UK government's ability to meet its target of cutting CO2 emissions by 20% by 2010 is at risk if the UK energy sector is dominated by US companies.

Anna Stanford, Energy Campaigner at Friends of the Earth, said:
“The energy business is presently divorced from the global warming debate. Yet as climate change regulations start to bite, companies investing in non-fossil fuel sources will gain a competitive edge. The UK Government should be very concerned about the takeover of the UK energy sector by foreign companies that deny the existence of global warming and are reluctant to do anything to help combat it. Before considering the Texas offer for short-term gain, Energy Group shareholders must be sure that Texas will continue to develop more sustainable sources of energy generation.”
                                            

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