Buying green energy can help businesses cut their energy costs by lifting them clear of carbon taxes, according to energy brokerage Business Juice.

Speaking to Energy Demand earlier this week, Ashton Berkhauer, director at Business Juice said that charges under the Climate Change Levy (CCL), which adds 0.509p/kWh to businesses’ electricity costs, and 0.177p/kWh to gas costs, can be averted if businesses opt for a green or renewable electricity supplier – potentially offering net savings.

“Buying green energy can actually help you steer clear of carbon tax,” he said. “Businesses don’t pay the Climate Change Levy on the green energy they buy, so going with a green tariff can sometimes work out cheaper. This is something that Business Juice has done for some clients, but because green energy tends to be more expensive, it depends on whether the increase in unit rate is lower than the levy.”

Most of the suppliers on the market offer a so-called “green tariff”, which supports low-carbon power sources over and above the amount obligated by the regulator.  Smaller specialist suppliers, such as Ecotricity and Good Energy, offer green tariffs exclusively, while energy brokers such as Business Juice allow energy managers to choose suppliers and tariffs according to their needs.

Berkhauer’s remarks come after the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) released a report suggesting that low-carbon policies are currently adding around a third to businesses’ electricity and gas bills, of which half can be attributed to the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC).

But Berkhauer warned that simply steering clear of the low-carbon suppliers will not offer energy managers a way of reducing businesses’ exposure to low-carbon costs, as all suppliers are obliged to source, and therefore charge for, a set amount of green power in conventional tariffs.

“In terms of avoiding the low-carbon policy cost burden, this is something that will be part of your energy bill whichever supplier you’re with, so avoiding ‘green’ energy suppliers won’t help,” he said.

However, the Energy Saving Trust warns businesses on its website that green tariffs are “no substitute for energy efficiency” today.

“You should always do whatever you reasonably can to reduce your current use of electricity and other fuels before considering spending money on a green tariff,” it said.

Business Juice, which issues a quarterly price forecast, estimates that business energy costs will increase by 6-8% in 2013.