Energy bills will rise but we still won't cut green taxes Ed Davey says he was on the verge of agreeing a £50billion investment in new nuclear power, which could drive bills even higher But he blames bills increasing on the rise in the cost of wholesale gas on international markets Green levies are set to rise to £270.30 by 2020 as the drive for green energy is stepped up No relief in sight: Energy Secretary Ed Dacey said yesterday that he believes the British public will face further price rises in the future Fuel prices will continue to soar, the Energy Secretary said yesterday - as he ruled out moves to cut punishing green taxes. Ed Davey said there was no respite in sight for hard-pressed families struggling to pay their fuel bills, adding: "I think we will see more price rises." The Liberal Democrat minister said Britain was on the verge of agreeing a £50billion French and Chinese investment in new nuclear power, which is expected to drive bills even higher. And he indicated the Lib Dems will try to block any attempt by David Cameron to reduce so-called green taxes. Downing Street confirmed last week that the Prime Minister has ordered a review into whether some green taxes could be watered down, delayed or scrapped altogether in a bid to ease the misery caused by soaring fuel bills. The Department of Energy and Climate Change's own figures suggest these levies already add £132.20 a year to the average bill. This figure is set to rise to £270.30 by 2020 as the drive for green energy is stepped up. But the Lib Dems have vowed to block any reduction in green taxes, arguing they are needed to support the development of wind farms and pay for the homes of the poor to be insulated. The Coalition rift means significant progress is unlikely before the election in 2015, when the Tories could pledge to reduce bills by cutting environmental levies. Power company SSE sparked fury last week by announcing plans to increase bills by 8.2 per cent this winter, partly because of green taxes. But Mr Davey - who described Labour's plan to freeze energy bills as a "con" - told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show that further price rises were inevitable. "I think we will see more price rises," he said. One of the reasons why we're seeing big energy price rises is the cost of wholesale gas on international markets. Now neither I, you or Ed Miliband can do anything about that. We have also seen a big increase in the network costs because we have got to replace ageing network. These are costs which are impossible to avoid. Mr Davey claimed green levies could play a crucial role in reducing energy bills in the long term, adding: "People have got to understand what these green taxes actually are. Most of them are actually social policies to help the fuel poor...so I don't think we want to get rid of those do we? He said direct subsidies to wind farms and other forms of renewable energy added only 4 per cent to bills. He said the payments were "absolutely" good value for money, despite widespread criticism. Campaigning: Song writer Sir Tim Rice has been a vocal critic of windfarms and says it is wrong for 'rich twits' to benefit from them at the expense of the average bill payer Mr Davey said ministers were "extremely close" to announcing a "massive" deal to allow France and China to build new nuclear power stations in Britain. He suggested that Korea and Japan could also play a significant role, despite the latter's problems in the wake of the Fukushima disaster. Details of the deal are likely to be announced this week. EDF energy, which is owned by the French state, and China General Nuclear will be in line for tens of billions of pounds in subsidies over the coming decades in return for building a new generation of nuclear reactors. Mr Davey insisted there would be none of the hidden subsidies that have inflated the cost of nuclear power in the past. But the Government is expected to guarantee nuclear investors a minimum price of £90 per megawatt hour - roughly double the current electricity price - for up to 35 years. The increased cost will be passed on through higher bills. The Department of Energy and Climate Change admits that electricity prices are 15 per cent higher because of green levies and gas prices are 5 per cent higher.