The supplier obligation - how will it work?

The Utilities Bill contains broad powers for a new obligation-based mechanism, but vital details will be fleshed out in regulations. According to Godfrey Bevan of the DTI, the Government hopes to consult in the autumn on three Orders dealing with the level of the obligation, the level of the buy-out price and the use of receipts from the latter. The Orders should be laid in 2001, and will come into effect between 2001 and 2003.