Isophoric News · Sunday, October 18, 2026
UK steelmakers' electricity premium over French rivals reaches highest in three years, lobby group says
British steelmakers pay a premium of almost £30 a megawatt hour over their French counterparts for electricity, the highest in three years, according to analysis by the lobby group UK Steel, The Guardian reported. The Guardian attributes the widening gap to a surge in global gas prices after the war on Iran, and says the gap with Germany fell slightly this year to about £12. UK Steel Director General Peter Brennan said direct subsidies are the only option to help steelmakers, and the group proposes a price cap it estimates would cost about £51 million a year. A government spokesperson said ministers are reducing electricity bills by up to 25% for over 10,000 manufacturing businesses and cutting costs for hundreds of the most electricity-intensive businesses by around £1 billion a year.
