18 August 2008
In a bid to combat rising energy prices and save taxpayers' money, the Scottish government is planning to bulk-buy electricity for the whole of the country's public sector, it has emerged. First Minister Alex Salmond said hundreds of individual contracts worth £200 million a year will be replaced by a single deal negotiated by parliament. The deal will be used to supply electricity to schools, universities, health boards and councils, as well as police and fire services and government agencies. It is believed a centrally negotiated contract - which will be tendered shortly - would save taxpayers more than £15 million in energy costs over three years. Writing in the Sunday Times, Mr Salmond said: "For the first time, the Scottish public sector will secure power at the best possible price thanks to an innovative new way of buying and managing demand for electricity." His comments come after EDF Energy and British Gas both increased the cost of their gas and electricity for the second time this year. Other energy suppliers are expected to follow suit.
© 2008 Adfero Ltd
Content for the uSwitch.com market news service is provided by a third party, Adfero Ltd. Whilst uSwitch.com makes reasonable efforts to check the reliability of this content, uSwitch.com does not guarantee the accuracy thereof or endorse the views or opinions given by Adfero Ltd, unless expressly stated otherwise.