'Get set to pay £240 more each year for energy by 2020'

 warns Npower, 'but thank the Government's green policies for it!'

The average British household will pay £240 more each year for their energy in seven years' time because of the costs of complying with the Government’s green energy policy demands, energy supplier Npower said today.

The energy firm claimed that by 2020 gas and electricity bills will be as much as 20 per cent higher - from an annual average of £1,247 today to £1,487. But it blamed costs related to green energy policies and transport rather than wholesale prices or energy companies seeking to maximise profit.

The report from the UK arm of the German energy supplier blamed Government efforts to encourage greener forms of energy production and household energy efficiency and to ensure sufficient capacity is available.

Money to burn: Npower says energy prices will rise by a further 20 per cent before the end of the decade.

he energy giant said support for low-carbon technologies alone would add £82 to the average energy bill by the end of the decade, up from £34 this year, and £12 in 2007.

The cost of investing in low-carbon power sources accounts for less than 3 per cent of the average household bill, but this will rise to 5.5 per cent by the end of this decade, it added.

Meanwhile, energy profits have risen from £18 on the average dual fuel bill in 2007 to £59 this year and Npower predicts that profits will rise to £71 in 2020.