Industries to be shielded from green energy costs as household bills to soar In an attempt to assuage fears, the Government will today unveil plans to exempt energy-intensive industries from additional costs arising from the new long-term electricity contracts. Energy Secretary Ed Davey said: "Decarbonisation should not mean deindustrialisation. There would be no advantage in simply forcing UK businesses to relocate to other countries. Ministers are yet to specify which industries will be exempt, or how much money they will save. However, a spokesman for the Department of Energy and Climate Change said the exemption would not affect the £7.6bn total for subsidies by 2020 - so would see other businesses and households pick up the costs instead. He insisted the impact of the exemption on others was "likely to be extremely small." Business Secretary Vince Cable said the move was a "critical reform" to ensure industry remained competitive. Manufacturers union EEF welcomed the move but said the Government must act to protect all energy consumers. The British Chambers of Commerce called on the Government to address wider concerns over business energy costs, warning that nearly 40pc of businesses felt rising energy bills had adversely affected their growth. Ministers will also today announce a consultation on plans to reduce the UK's energy demand. These could include paying consumers for electricity saved by installing energy-efficient lighting.