The Department of Energy was a department of the United Kingdom Government. The department was established in January 1974, when the responsibility for energy production was transferred away from the Department of Trade and Industry in the wake of the

1973 oil crisis The 1973 oil crisis or first oil crisis began in October 1973 when the members of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC), led by Saudi Arabia, proclaimed an oil embargo. The embargo was targeted at nations that had su ...

and with the importance of

North Sea oil North Sea oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons, comprising liquid petroleum and natural gas, produced from petroleum reservoirs beneath the North Sea. In the petroleum industry, the term "North Sea" often includes areas such as the Norwegian Se ...

increasing. Following the

privatisation Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...

of the energy industries in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

, which had begun some ten years earlier, the department was abolished in 1992. Many of its functions were abandoned, with the remainder being absorbed into other bodies or departments. The Office of Gas Supply (Ofgas) and the Office of Electricity Regulation (OFFER) took over market regulation, the Energy Efficiency Office was transferred to the

Department of the Environment An environmental ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for the environment and/or natural resources. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of the Environment, ...

, and various media-related functions were transferred to the Department of National Heritage. The core activities relating to UK energy policy were transferred back to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). The Department of Energy was a significant source of funding for energy research, and for investigations into the potential for

renewable energy Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. It includes sources such as sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy ...

technologies in the UK. Work funded or part-funded by the department included investigations into

Geothermal power Geothermal power is electrical power generated from geothermal energy. Technologies in use include dry steam power stations, flash steam power stations and binary cycle power stations. Geothermal electricity generation is currently used in 2 ...

and the

Severn Barrage The Severn Barrage is any of a range of ideas for building a barrage from the English coast to the Welsh coast over the Severn tidal estuary. Ideas for damming or barraging the Severn estuary (and Bristol Channel) have existed since the 19t ...

Brean Down barrage plan unveiled by Welsh businessman
''Burnham-on-sea.com'', published 2006-03-04, accessed 2007-03-22.

Ministers

Secretary of State for Energy

Colour key (for political parties):
''Politicians'': Junior ministers included Peter Morrison (Minister of State in 1987) and Patrick Jenkin.

Earlier and later ministries

Although only formed in 1974, the Department of Energy was not the first ministry to handle energy-related matters. The

Ministry of Fuel and Power The Ministry of Power was a United Kingdom government ministry dealing with issues concerning energy. The Ministry of Power (then named Ministry of Fuel and Power) was created on 11 June 1942 from functions separated from the Board of Trade. ...

was created on 11 June 1942 from functions separated from the

Board of Trade The Board of Trade is a British government body concerned with commerce and industry, currently within the Department for International Trade. Its full title is The Lords of the Committee of the Privy Council appointed for the consideration of ...

. It took charge of coal production, allocation of supplies of fuels, control of energy prices and petrol

rationing Rationing is the controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, services, or an artificial restriction of demand. Rationing controls the size of the ration, which is one's allowed portion of the resources being distributed on a particular ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. The Ministry of Fuel and Power was renamed the Ministry of Power in January 1957. The Ministry of Power later became part of the Ministry of Technology on 6 October 1969, which merged into the Department of Trade and Industry on 20 October 1970. The post of Secretary of State for Energy was re-created in 2008 as the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change.

References

{{reflist

External links

History of the Department of Energy

Energy In physics, energy (from Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια, ''enérgeia'', “activity”) is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of ...

Department of Energy and Climate Change Ministries established in 1974 1974 establishments in the United Kingdom 1992 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Defunct environmental agencies Energy ministries Energy in the United Kingdom

Ministers

Secretary of State for Energy

Earlier and later ministries

See also

References

External links